Natural Phenomenon
by Nimash
Summary: When the Host Club recruits three new members, you could say they're a natural phenomenon. However, what the club finds even more astounding, is just how separated the three siblings are. Can the club help them be a family, and maybe find some romance?
1. We Need More Trios

Chapter 1

We Need More Trios

Tamaki watched the freshman trio of the Host Club with concentration that could only be matched by a scientist. In a way, it fit, since he was analyzing, pondering, observing.

"Mommy, why is it that Haruhi and the twins are so close and so popular? It seems that most of this love comedy revolves around them," Tamaki observed, never taking his eyes off of his subjects. He was sitting on a couch, watching as Hikaru and Kaoru teased Haruhi affectionately, Haruhi looking annoyed, but still managing to somewhat play along.

Kyoya rolled his eyes inwardly, stopping his writing. _Why must he always insist on calling me that? And does he still believe that we're in some romantic comedy?_ Kyoya thought to himself. He answered coolly, "I suppose good things just come in threes."

Tamaki observed in silence for another minute, until something finally clicked. "That's it, Kyo!" he exclaimed, causing the entire club to watch him. Luckily, the customers had already left. Tamaki hit his signature pose, with his right index finger pointing up and near his cheek, explaining professionally, "In order to raise our club's popularity, we need to become trios in each grade! After all, the more the merrier, I always say! Just look at my daughter and her brothers, they're setting the perfect example! No wonder Haruhi's a natural, she has the magic power of three!"

Hunny cocked his head to the side, pausing from eating his cake. "What does that mean, Tamaki?"

"It means that starting right now, Kyoya, Hunny, Mori, and I need to recruit one more host from our grade!"

"Eh, what about us, Milord?" the twins asked, bored from being left out.

Tamaki shook his head. "Obviously, you're already a trio."

Identical smirks appeared on their faces. "But you just said the more the merrier..."

Tamaki flushed. "Well, I suppose I did-"

"Great! So the first hosts to recruit a new member win!"

Hunny looked utterly confused, but excited. "We better get started, Takashi!"

"Yeah."

Now Tamaki was confused. "B-bu-b-but, I never said anything about a contest-"

"The winners may receive the middle school photos I still have of Haruhi." Kyoya held them up like a deck of cards, Haruhi preparing herself for another long school week with the Host Club.

"Let the competition begin!" Tamaki announced.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Done and done.**

**I couldn't help it, I had to post this! I love this story, it's what I'm working on right now, and plus, I only have three fanfics right now, so... uh... yeah, just enjoy.**

**This is more of a prologue, but there is a whole lot more coming. Please review!  
**


	2. The New Recruits

Chapter 2

The New Recruits

Hikaru and Kaoru leaned against the wall of the school building, both with identical scanning eyes, watching for a possible recruit. Haruhi had already left early for class, and even the Hitachiin Twins wouldn't go to class ten minutes early just to bug her.

"See any promising talent or entertainment, Hika?"

"No. You?"

"No."

They kept scanning the crowd, no more words exchanged. They didn't need words to know that the other was busy searching the crowd of students for a boy their age with some sort of hosting capability.

Kaoru sighed. "Well, what about the class president? He could be the Shy Type…"

"As entertaining as that sounds, it just won't work. If we want to find a better host than the others, we need someone with more-"

"Pizzazz," Kaoru finished, returning to his search. It was beginning to become boring, and the twins' number one rule was to drop something when they were bored with it.

Hikaru quit his search and stood up from leaning, turning to Kaoru. "Maybe we'll have better luck inside. Besides, I want to go bug Haruhi now."

Kaoru shared his twin's Cheshire grin. "We better hurry, we only have five minutes left to torment our toy."

The twins set off, stepping into the high-class school as others rushed to their classes. Even their walking was in harmony. The Hitachiins watched the rushed students, amused. They didn't care any more if they were late; they figured the school was lucky they even bothered to show up.

Just as the twins neared their classroom, the clicking of their shoes against the marble floor beginning to lessen, a voice cried out, "MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" Too little too late.

Now Hikaru and Kaoru were flat against the marble floor, wondering who in the world had the nerve to knock them down. That who was currently lying on top of them, and limbs were sprawled out everywhere.

"Gomen! But next time, watch where you're going," the mystery student scolded, standing up and brushing himself off.

The twins sweat dropped. "You're the one who ran into us."

The boy went wide-eyed as both of them stood up. "Whoa! You're twins!"

"No duh." The twins were getting agitated by the new boy, and began inspecting him. He had bright, huge emerald eyes, that were just a little smaller than Haruhi's and blond, slightly spiky hair that went just a little past his ears and covered the top of his right eye. The boy was fairly tall, standing at 5'8". His features were small and pixie-like, his ivory skin fair. His uniform looked untidy, with his pants a bit baggy at the shoes.

The boy smiled, pointing to himself while telling them, "Well, I'm Riley, the new American student in Class 1A!"

He was confident; the Hitachiins could give him that. They shared a look with each other, smirks appearing on their faces as the confident and possibly (and he was) wacky boy stood in the same position.

Hikaru started, "That means you-"

"Are in our class," Kaoru finished, placing his elbow on Hikaru's shoulder.

Riley looked confused. "What up with smoke sudden?"(1)

"Eh?"

Riley blushed. He told them, "My bad. I just learned Japanese last summer, and I'm a little dusty."

Kaoru nodded, laughing. "I believe you meant to say 'rusty'."

Hikaru shared his laugh, mocking, "You Americans must not learn any foreign languages."

Riley stomped his foot. "I'll have you know that I can speak English, Spanish, French, and German fluently!"

Kaoru smirked, turning and whispering a little too loudly, "Notice how he left out Japanese."

Suddenly Riley smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, wise guys, speak English."

"Eh?"

"You heard me. If you're suddenly the language experts, speak in my native tongue!"

If there was one thing that Hikaru and Kaoru didn't like, it was being outsmarted. They huffed, "Well, now you've gone and made us late for class."

Riley widened his eyes. "Oh snap, that means I'm late!" Without another word or seeing the 'no duh' look that the twins gave him, he ran into the classroom, slamming the door behind him, taking out a note.

Before making a move to open the door, Kaoru turned to his twin, asking, "So what's your analysis of him, dear brother?"

"Well, my dearest twin, he's entertaining, I'll give him that. And I _suppose _he looks good enough to be a host."

They entered, the class paying little to no attention to them. All eyes were on Riley, allowing Hikaru and Kaoru to slide into their seats beside Haruhi.

"You two are late," Haruhi mumbled, slightly interested in the new boy.

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "We happened to be doing something important."

"Class," the teacher announced, "This is Riley Davidson. He's from America, so please help him with his Japanese and show him around school."

Finally, Riley turned around, revealing his face to the class for the first time. The girls gasped, followed by blushes, and the boys' eyes widened.

Riley's first word was certainly classy. "Suuup?" he greeted the class in a low voice, raising a hand as if he was going to wave.

The girls giggled, and the boys just weren't sure what to make of him. He seemed a little girly, like Haruhi, but he was registered as a boy.

"Care to introduce yourself?" The male teacher had to keep from rolling his eyes.

"Mah name's Riley, I'm here 'cause it's the law, not to learn, and I come from shiny California." The gentlemanship just kept on coming.

A few more girls giggled at his error, thinking it was somehow cute. The teacher whispered into his ear, Riley's eyes widening. "Oooh," Riley nodded, "Riiight. I meant _sunny_ California."

"Then, if you would take a seat in front of Haruhi? Haruhi, could you raise your hand?"

"'Kay." Riley gave his longish hair a flip, proceeding to take his seat. Right before he sat down, he added with a wink, "And I'm single."

"If I may get to teaching, Riley?"

"My bad." Riley gave another wink, the girls going gaga. The boys were now utterly confused. What did they put in the water in California?

"Well, that's a bit of an attitude change," Hikaru and Kaoru noticed, taking out their pencils.

Haruhi mumbled, "How?"

Kaoru started, "Well, when he ran into us outside, he was totally weird and wacko, but now-"

"In front of these girls, he's flirty and smooth," Hikaru finished, rolling his eyes.

Haruhi shrugged. "Maybe he's good at acting."

Hikaru and Kaoru exchanged a look, grinning. "We've just found our new recruit."

* * *

Hunny watched with huge eyes as the new student entered Class 3A. Mori sat obediently and silently next to him, watching with a stoic face.

Hunny looked up at him, his eyes shining. "Do you think he would like to be our new host, Takashi?"

Mori shrugged. They both continued to watch the young male, who seemed almost as stoic as Mori, but his emerald eyes were intense.

The boy stood at 6 feet, and his presence was calm and calculated, but hard not to notice. His blond, slightly spiky hair covered just the tips of his right eye, which was elegant and more almond-shaped, just a little more feminine than Mori's. The boy was handsome to say the least, and certainly attracted the attention of all the female students.

The boy himself, however, paid no attention to that. He was studious and focused strictly on his class work, never drawing any of his attention away from the lesson. His pixie-features were constantly buried in his notebook, so girls would crane their necks, just to catch a glimpse of his mature face.

His name was Alex. He rarely talked, but when he did, it was with an air of maturity, responsibility, and importance. The boys were a bit stunned by his formality, and his perfect Japanese, considering he was from America, and the girls couldn't care less, since he was so charming.

"Alex, what is the answer to #4?"

"X is equal to Pi squared." No stutters, mumbling, scanning his page frantically to find the answer. Mori and Hunny were impressed. Alex was quick to learn, and never focused on anything more. And so they had to wait until between classes to talk to him.

Hunny skipped over to the new boy, bright and cheery as he greeted him, "Hi! I'm Mitsukuni, but everyone calls me Hunny. You can too! Welcome to Ouran!"

Alex looked down at the boy in a slightly intimidating way. He spoke, his voice clean and clear, "Thank you, Mitsukuni. I am very honored to know that someone as popular as you would take the time to greet me like that."

Hunny noticed his smile was sincere, although he talked like Kyoya. Hunny beamed, "And this is Takashi! His nickname is Mori."

"Good morning, Takashi."

"Hello."

Alex blinked. A man of few words, indeed. He stood up, his perfectly fitted clothes showing no signs of wrinkles. He gathered his books, and began to walk out of the class, Hunny and Mori following.

"Alex, I have a question I'd like to ask you," Hunny told him, trying to act somewhat formal. It was hard for the boy who looked like he was barely five.

"Please do ask."

Hunny beamed, hugging his Usa-chan tight. "Well, there's a Host Club, and Mori and I think you would be perfect for it! Right, Mori?"

"Yeah."

Alex stopped cold in front of the door to their next class. A slight smile tugged at his lips, as he began to calculate in his mind. "A host club, you say?"

* * *

Tamaki squirmed in his seat, hardly able to keep still. They had just seen the new boy, and he knew right there and then from intuition that he would recruit him. That would show those two little devils!

Kyoya twitched as Tamaki knocked into his elbow, causing his pencil to create a dark line over the page. The blond idiot was even more excited, thanks to Charlie. Still, if it brought Kyoya more profits, he could get used to it. Besides, this definitely wasn't one of Tamaki's dumbest moments.

"Oh, Kyo, just look at him! So handsome, intelligent! All the girls already love him!" Tamaki whispered as their teacher continued writing down more equations on the blackboard.

Kyoya took the bait and looked over to Charlie, the American student. Perhaps Tamaki had horrible timing, but at that moment, Charlie looked extremely unintelligent, seeming to begin to daydream and doodle on his page. Kyoya returned to his work, bored.

Charlie's blond hair was a shade lighter than Tamaki's, and slightly spiky, his right side part covering a bit of his emerald eye. His eyes were in between Haruhi and Tamaki's eyes, but looked feminine. His pointy features and perfect ivory skin finished off his face, his uniform fitted comfortably, with just a few wrinkles. Kyoya calculated that he was about 5'10", maybe a half inch taller.

Overall, Charlie seemed to be a quiet student, answering a question or whispering a sarcastic comment to the girl sitting next to him, making her blush. She was kept blushing throughout all of class.

Kyoya of course, had already known about Charlie, but decided to keep the new students a secret from the others. Tamaki returned to his quiet praises, mumbling about how he would beat Hikaru and Kaoru, and how the club was going to be even more popular.

It was finally the end of all their classes, and it was now or never. Tamaki sprang up to the boy, making his way through a few giggly girls and some boys who were chatting with him. "Excuse me, Charlie Davidson?" Tamaki asked, as polite as ever.

"Ah, Tamaki Suoh. I've heard a lot about you," Charlie commented, giving his hair a flip, sending a few girls swooning.

Tamaki's eyes lit up. "You have?"

Charlie shrugged. "Sure. But enough of that, did you need something?"

Tamaki perked up and got more excited, if that was even possible. "How would you, Charlie Davidson, feel about joining the Ouran High School Host Club?" Tamaki hit a dramatic pose, his fans watching in awe.

"Host Club? What's that?"

Tamaki sank. "Y-yo-you've never heard of it?" he asked, astounded, his voice a squeak.

"Can't say I have." Charlie shrugged, but seeing Tamaki become depressed, he added, "But I guess you could say I'm interested if it's such a big honor."

"Oh, it is!" Tamaki assured him, making a miraculous recovery. "Kyoya, care to explain?"

Kyoya sighed, once again being dragged into it. He smiled a fake smile at Charlie, explaining, "Our host club is provided by wealthy and handsome high school boys with too much time on their hands to entertain young wealthy ladies, also with too much time on their hands."

Charlie thought for a bit, mumbling, "That sounded oddly like a synopsis for a movie…" He thought for another minute, then shrugged, a small smile on his face. "But hey, why not? When does it start?"

"Right now! We need to hurry, if we want to get there first with our new recruit!" Tamaki sprang at the chance, grabbing Charlie's wrist and dragging him along through the hallways at full speed. Charlie struggled to keep up with the host king's excitement, stumbling and trying to make sure he didn't drop his school bag.

Kyoya followed behind at a slower rate, knowing fully well that they were always the first ones there anyway. He opened up his black notebook, skimming a page as he neared the door, going over his notes.

Tamaki looked triumphant, yipping, "Oh, wait till the others see you! They'll be so impressed!"

Charlie looked utterly confused. Knowing he wouldn't get any answers out of Tamaki, he looked over to Kyoya. "What's he rambling on about?"

"Oh, you'll see in a minute." The Shadow King adjusted his glasses, the light reflecting off of the lenses so you couldn't see his eyes. Charlie shuddered.

Just as Charlie took a seat on a couch, the freshmen trio popped in, Hikaru and Kaoru looking around. They seemed to be looking for someone. As their eyes rested on Charlie, they cried out, "There you are! Why are you with tono?"

"Huh? Do I know you two?" The twins and Haruhi stood in silent shock as they started to notice the subtle differences between this boy and Riley.

Tamaki sighed. "What are you two blabbing about? This is Charlie, my new recruit!"

"Hi everyone! Takashi and I found a new recruit, Alex!" Hunny jumped in, Mori and Alex following silently behind.

Alex stopped cold as he and Charlie stared. "Alex?" "Charlie?" The host's eyes widened, all except for Kyoya.

As the awkward silence settled in, the huge doors slammed open, Riley running in. "Sorry I'm late! This school is just so huge, and I-" Riley stood still for once as he noticed Charlie and Alex.

* * *

**Disclaimer: I only own my OCs.**

**(1) Riley mean to say, "What up with the sudden smirks?" Poor poor Riley, hopefully his Japanese will improve.  
**

**And so you meet my OCs! Now the Host Club is in for a surprise... Tired, so I'm just going to let you continue reviewing, reading, and such...  
**


	3. Starting Today, You Are Hosts!

Chapter 3

Starting Today, You Are Hosts!

_~~~~Flashback Start~~~~_

_Just as Charlie took a seat on a couch, the freshmen trio popped in, Hikaru and Kaoru looking around. They seemed to be looking for someone. As their eyes rested on Charlie, they cried out, "There you are! Why are you with tono?"_

_"Huh? Do I know you two?" The twins and Haruhi stood in silent shock as they started to notice the subtle differences between this boy and Riley._

_ Tamaki sighed. "What are you two blabbing about? This is Charlie, my new recruit!"_

_ "Hi everyone! Takashi and I found a new recruit, Alex!" Hunny jumped in, Mori and Alex following silently behind. _

_ Alex stopped cold as he and Charlie stared. "Alex?" "Charlie?" The host's eyes widened, all except for Kyoya._

_ As the awkward silence settled in, the huge doors slammed open, Riley running in. "Sorry I'm late! This school is just so huge, and I-" Riley stood still for once as he noticed Charlie and Alex._

_~~~~Flashback End~~~~_

Then chaos ensued. The Host Club began having a 'WTF moment', and the look-alikes yelled at each other in perfect harmony, "What are you two doing here? Me? I asked both of you first! … Stop copying me!"

Kyoya let the chaos die down a bit before he recited from his little black notebook, a slight smirk on his face, "Riley, Charlie, and Alex Davidson, the heirs to the Davidson Family fortune. The Davidsons are an American family that specialize in fine culinary and performing arts, and have recently moved to Japan due to broadening their work. Riley Davidson is the youngest, and is to inherit their close uncle's business of theatres. Charlie Davidson is the middle child, and will inherit their mother's chain of fine dining restaurants. Alex Davidson is the eldest, and will inherit their father's talent agency. They are considered to be a natural phenomenon, as they are almost identical triplets, but are all born exactly a year apart from each other. All three are exemplary students, and have no criminal records."

The Host Club stood in awe as they watched the three brothers, who were apparently angered by the sight of each other. "Kyoya," Tamaki finally mumbled, "You knew this all along?"

"Well of course. Why else would I agree to letting you take in three more members?" Kyoya turned back to the almost triplets, asking, "Now then, one question remains: Will you join the Host Club or not?"

"Not if they're in it," all three of them hissed at the same time.

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. She mumbled to herself, "Just like Hikaru and Kaoru…"

Riley spoke up, loud and bold as ever, "If my two brothers are going to be in it, them I'm up!"

"It's '_out_' you baka," Alex muttered, rolling his eyes.

Riley made a big show of jumping up and down, trying to meet his brother's eyes and waving his arms while yelling angrily, "Well I can't help it if I just learned! And don't insult me with more Japanese!"

Charlie sighed, rolling his eyes. He looked over to the hosts, explaining, "This is why I'm not going to join if they are."

"But you have to!" Tamaki and the twins exclaimed at the same time.

Alex looked away from his younger brother, raising an eyebrow. "Oh? Is there now a law that says we can't refuse?"

Kyoya's glasses caught a glint. "Actually," he explained, adjusting his glasses, "My family owns a secret police force…"

Riley twitched. "The creepy stalker dude has control over a secret police force. Great…"

Hikaru and Kaoru pointed at Riley, stating, "The weird and wacky one."

"HEY!"

This time their finger landed on Alex to the left, "The over mature and responsible one."

Alex gave them a slight glare, but ignored them otherwise.

This time the twins' fingers landed on Charlie. "And the missing link."

Hunny jumped onto Riley's back, wailing, "Please stay! We want you to join! If you stay, I'll let you hold Usa-chan!"

Riley proceeded to begin running and screaming, waving his arms wildly. "AHHH! GET HIM OFF! GET HIM OFF!" Mori followed, quickly swiping Hunny off of the wacky boy's back, automatically seeing the danger. Riley continued to run and scream for another minute; not realizing Hunny was already on Mori's shoulders. Charlie and Alex palmed their foreheads, the other hosts raising an eyebrow. Finally Riley stopped, standing up straight. "Oh, thanks," Riley mumbled to Mori, adding, "I don't like people… touching me. Not at school, at least."

"There a special reason for that?" Hikaru and Kaoru asked in their sticky sweet voices, slinging their arms around the boy's shoulders.

"Just not around the torso-" Riley was snatched off by his brothers, who began scolding him in the corner in hushed voices. It soon turned to yelling and arguing, until finally Charlie yelled, "Enough already!"

The Host Club watched in confusion. Kyoya sighed. "So then, are you joining or not?"

Tamaki yipped, "It would be a great honor, a once in a lifetime opportunity!"

The almost triplets traded glances between each other, having a silent conversation. Finally they seemed to come to an agreement. Alex stepped forward, mainly speaking to Kyoya. "All right, we will join." Alex cut the competitors excitement by adding, "But on a few conditions. We get our own changing rooms, no kissing, and we can decline any act at any time."

Kyoya gritted his teeth. He hated having to compromise his wishes. He told him with a false smile, "You start today, but first we should assign you your types."

"Types?" the three brothers chorused.

Tamaki explained, hitting a montage of poses, "Yes! For at the Host Club, we pride ourselves on providing a variety of hosts to the young maidens. For example, I, Tamaki, also known as the Host Club king, am the Princely Type!" He pointed over to the twins, explaining, "Hikaru and Kaoru are the Little Devil Types, although they also have a 'brotherly love' act." Tamaki's finger landed on Haruhi. "Haruhi is the Natural Type." Tamaki went on, introducing the last three hosts, "And Kyoya is the Cool Type, Mori is the Wild Type, and Hunny is the Boy-Lolita Type!"

Hikaru and Kaoru chipped in, "Riley should be the Bold Type. He's wacky and flirty around the ladies."

"I'm not wa- Hey! When did that painting get there?"

Tamaki added, "Charlie definitely fits the Neutral Type."

"I think Alex should be the Intellectual Type!" Hunny chirped, hugging his precious bunny.

Riley whined, "Aww! No fair! I wanted to pick!"

Charlie raised an eyebrow. "Aren't 'Natural' and 'Neutral' the same thing?"

Haruhi shrugged. She explained, "I guess he means you don't take sides."

Charlie mumbled under his breath, "Just like home…"

"Huh?"

"Nothing, I said nothing."

Hikaru and Kaoru went over to Kyoya, asking excitedly, "So, we won, right?"

"No, I won!" Tamaki whined, gesturing over to Charlie.

Hunny looked up at Kyoya. "I thought Takashi and I won."

"Yeah."

Kyoya pushed up his glasses, sighing. "We all brought new recruits the very next day after we declared the contest, so no one wins or loses."

"Too bad, I wanted those cute pictures of Haruhi," Hunny half-smiled, turning to find his platter of cake.

The Davidson brothers raised an eyebrow. "Eh?"

Kyoya explained, "Since you're now part of the Host Club, you should know that Haruhi is actually a girl, she just dresses as a boy to pay off her debt."

The three boys exchanged a glance, chuckling nervously. Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

Alex answered before Riley could blurt out something stupid, "It just reminds us of someone we know."

Tamaki chirped, "Let's hurry and get into position! The ladies will be here any minute!"

The Host Club assumed their usual position with Tamaki sitting in his chair, Alex standing on the opposite side of Tamaki as Mori, Charlie standing behind Haruhi, and Riley holding a very strange Eygptian pose in front of Hikaru and Kaoru.

"Welcome," the boys chorused as the first girls opened up the doors, Charlie and Alex remaining silent.

"Guten Tag!" (1) Need I mention who said it?

Hikaru and Kaoru snickered at the boy, but the girls gasped at the new recruits. They automatically flocked to Kyoya, setting new appointments or changing theirs.

Charlie decided to sit on a couch back-to-back with the couch Haruhi was at, waiting as two girls seated themselves. They were in his grade, but in Class B. He greeted them, smiling, "Hello, I'm Charlie."

The girls set to work on talking to him, trying to find out more about him. "What's your favorite color?"

Charlie would smile and tell them, "I'm open to many different colors. I'm actually in training to be a chef, so I love vibrant colors, especially in my dishes. Although I must say, your eyes are the deepest blue I've ever seen..." And so it went on.

Alex mainly attracted some of the more intelligent girls, such as Ayame from Class 2A. (2) He talked about different scholarly and business things, so he failed to attract a large portion of the ditsy fangirls that came to the Host Club.

Riley was, well... One thing that the Host Club learned quickly with Riley was that he was unpredictable, although being bold still held true. Sometimes he would flirt like a bad boy with his customers, sometimes he would be more of a gentleman, other times he would be mischievous and fool around with another host, and he still had more personalities he had yet to reveal.

"Well, they're naturals," Kyoya concluded, his little black notebook slamming shut.

Tamaki was convinced. "It's the power of three!"

Riley overheard. "That's what she said, dude!" He started doubling over in laughter, the club and customers giving him confused looks.

Charlie shook his head. "I have to say, Riley, I don't think that was a 'that's what she said'."

"Sure it is! Just think about it for a second. _The power of three..._"

"I still don- Oh that's disgusting Riley!"

Alex rolled his eyes. "You two are so immature." (3)

Hikaru and Kaoru shrugged. "Must be an American thing."

Riley stopped laughing, staring at the two. "You mean you've never heard of 'that's what she said'?"

"But you know, Kaoru, I would never let this 'she' say anything bad about you..." Hikaru pulled his twin into a tight embrace.

Kaoru blushed. "Hikaru..."

Alex widened his eyes. Charlie looked sick. Riley proceeded to yell and gesture wildly. "Oh, so you Japanese don't have 'that's what she said', but you have fake incest!"

"F-fake?" Kaoru stuttered, being the perfect uke.

Hikaru pulled Kaoru closer to him. "How could you dare to call my love for my brother fake?"

"Hikaru..."

Quote the fangirls: "KYAAAAAA!" And cue the fainting.

Riley whined, "Thanks a lot guys, now I have two unconscious customers."

Tamaki was eager to learn though. "What did she say? What is this American, 'that's what she said'?"

Riley cracked a grin. "Are you sure you want me to tell you?"

"Most certainly!"

* * *

"He insisted," Riley defended himself, shrugging as he left the music room with his brothers, the other hosts twitching.

The Hitachiin Twins commented, "Man, Americans are perverts."

Kyoya shook it off, packing up his things and walking out to the hallway. "Well, your first day as hosts went well. I sent a packet to your home for you three to read over tomorrow. And next time, try not to disturb Tamaki. He's still frozen."

Riley shrugged. "I warned him."

Haruhi sighed as she set to work. "Tamaki, I bought a new brand of coffee-"

"Really?!" Tamaki snapped back to life, following after the others to the hallway.

Hunny and Mori were the first to depart, walking towards their limo. Kyoya was second, giving a few final instructions to the Davidson brothers before heading to his own limo, Tamaki in tow. Haruhi was close behind them, but turned and walked towards the subway station. Alex left briskly, not saying a word, and Charlie began to walk towards a separate car, waving to the others, but ignoring Alex and Riley. Hikaru and Kaoru were the last to leave, and began to head towards their own limo, when they stopped and noticed that Riley was left standing at the top of the marble stairs of the school, staring forlornly at his brothers' cars.

"Something wrong, wacky?" They seemed to simultaneously agree on the new nickname, staring back at Riley.

Riley sighed, not as loud as Hikaru and Kaoru were used to seeing him. In fact, he looked saddened and vulnerable. He mumbled, "Just remembering when we where young and actually rode in the same car or limo."

"What, you mean you take separate cars _everyday_?" The whole idea was baffling to the Hitachiin Twins. What brothers would actually hate each other enough to not even be in the same car?

Riley half-smiled, apparently trying to laugh it off, "Planes, boats, any mode of transportation. We just can't stand to share one for more than a minute."

Hikaru and Kaoru couldn't help but gape. Hikaru shook it off, yelling, "Well, don't look like an idiot and just stand there! Get to your car before they close the school!"

Riley seemed to snap out of his sadness, yelling, flying down the stairs faster than the twins thought possible, "You're the ones who look like idiots! You've been standing at your car gaping for five minutes!" Riley barely managed to skid to a stop right before he crashed into Kaoru.

Kaoru scolded, "Bad wacky! Don't call your superiors idiots!" Secretly, though, Kaoru was thankful that Riley was smiling and back to his old self. Heaven knows what might happen to the balance of the universe if Riley suddenly turned serious!

Riley pouted, snapping, "Whaddya mean, superiors? We're the same age!"

Hikaru rolled his eyes. He smirked, "Yeah, but we were born June 9th."

Riley grinned evilly as he boasted, "March 20th."

Hikaru's reply: "Damn."

Kaoru rolled his eyes, mocking the boy, "True, but even _we_ act older than you."

Riley opened his mouth to snap back at them, but paused, closed his mouth, thought for a bit, and shrugged, replying, "Guess you got me."

"Now let us go home, wacky."

Just as they slid into their limo, they could hear and see through their tinted windows Riley waving wildly, yelling after them, "See you tomorrow, old geezers!"

* * *

**Disclaimer: By now, you have this memorized.**

**(1) Guten Tag- "Good day" in German. After all, Riley speaks German fluently...**

**(2) Ayame is a scholarly female student mentioned in the manga. If you haven't read it and don't have a clue who she is, sucks for you. Just look it up on Wikipedia or read the manga.**

**(3) The whole TWSS scene is a little shout-out to all my perverted friends that I eat lunch with. You know who you are ;). I'm honestly not as perverted as most of them, who keep calling out at the top of their lungs, "THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!" every 5 minutes. Oh, the conversations you can have at school during lunch...**

**So, Riley is getting kind of deep... Yawn, tired, posted 3 chapters in one night, and I still have (counts) 3 left. I shall post them... later. Deal with mah laziness. :-/  
**


	4. Gender Bender

Chapter 4

Gender Bender

Just three days, and it was the weekend. But what days they were! The Davidson brothers had begun to learn more about the Host Club's secrets, and made it even more popular than ever.

Hikaru and Kaoru had begun to tease Riley about his weirdness, and laughed as the boy tried to snap back, his huge eyes never allowing him to look truly mad for too long.

Hunny had tried to get Alex to eat some cake, but every time, Alex refused. He mumbled something about not liking sweets, but never right in front of Hunny. Alex had learned that Hunny was a martial arts master, and took his sweets seriously. Alex was much too smart to not be careful about what he said around the boy.

Charlie was constantly being cooed at by Tamaki, Haruhi usually right by his side, enduring the compliments with him. He didn't seem to mind too much, but made sure to establish some boundaries and limits.

On the other hand, the Davidson brothers had gotten used to the fact that Haruhi was a girl. In fact, it didn't seem to bug them at all, but seemed to make them closer.

Riley sat next to her in all their classes, making sure that Haruhi was bugged to no end by not only the Hitachiin Twins, but now Riley as well. Some examples: "Haruhi, I don't understand the homework!" "Where did my pencil go?" "Haruhi, Kaoru is bugging me!" "I swear, I can't find my pencil!" "Why can't I sit with you in the classroom for lunch, Haruhi?" "Seriously, where is my freaking pencil?! … Oh, there it is! Silly me, it was in my lap the whole time! I can't believe I made you look for it for five minutes." The past three days had been a living hell for the commoner girl.

Charlie would often talk with Haruhi, giving her a rest from the wacky antics of the Host Club. They talked about simple things: the weather, school, etc. But Charlie's favorite thing to talk about with her was food. Haruhi learned that Charlie was training to be a chef, since one day he would take over his mom's fine dining business. He was passionate about cooking, and Haruhi herself, being a fan, instantly found that it was easy to be herself around him.

Alex was much like Kyoya, only older. He rarely talked to Haruhi, but would often warn her that Kyoya might add something to her debt. At first she ignored it, but after some time, she realized that Alex was always accurate, and began to take his advice. Besides that, Haruhi rarely talked to the boy, just silently watched him every once in a while.

Now, though, it was Friday, and everyone could have two days to himself or herself. However, Haruhi still had a few more minutes to endure as Riley decided he would take the subway with her home. At first, the others had decided they wanted to come too, minus Riley's older brothers and Kyoya, but Haruhi quickly pointed out that they didn't have tokens, and she and Riley didn't have enough for them.

Haruhi stood in silence as she grasped the pole, Riley on her opposite side. Riley was relatively quiet, watching with interest at the people who got on and got off. He laughed softly at a man who claimed to "read people's palms". Riley decided that it was worth a shot and let the man closely examine his hand.

Haruhi watched with slight interest as the man nodded, explaining, "You will have a secret of yours revealed soon, and you have met your true love already."

Riley puzzled over the thought, returning to where Haruhi stood. "A secret, huh?" he mused to himself, seeming to ignore the part about his romantic life.

Haruhi shrugged it off, but somewhere in her mind, the man's word echoed. _You have met your true love already_. Riley had met _her_… Haruhi shook the thought out of her head. She couldn't even begin to think of Riley like that, it was more likely that she liked Hikaru… Haruhi mentally slapped herself. Her thoughts were getting way out of hand.

"Hey, Haruhi." She felt a light tap on her shoulder, and saw Riley was the source. He smiled. "Sorry, but you looked like you zoned out for a second."

"Oh, thanks."

Silence consumed a few minutes, Haruhi still mentally scolding herself for even being tempted to think about that, and Riley blissfully unaware.

Finally, Riley began to feel uncomfortable, and broke the ice. "So, are you going to the expo at the outlet mall?"

Haruhi blinked. She told him, "I was thinking about it, and I might stop by. Why?"

"Oh, I'm going. They always have awesome and crazy foods that I know Charlie loves, and there's always something serious I can get Alex for his birthday."

Haruhi faintly smiled. They really did care about each other, even if they didn't want to admit it. And it seemed that the Davidson brothers were used to the middle-class, and didn't flaunt that they were probably rich enough to buy Haurhi's apartment with their allowance. She nodded, telling the boy, "My dad won't be home on the weekend, and so I'll probably stop by around lunch."

Riley replied a little too quickly not to be suspicious, "Ah, what a shame, I'll probably be gone by then!"

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. She decided not to press the matter further, as her stop was next. Riley got off with her, heading off towards a gated community, waving her goodbye as he ran off.

Haruhi sighed, relieved as she sank into her bed. Finally, a little quiet time for herself.

* * *

Tamaki was up bright and early with most of the rest of the Host Club, minus Kyoya and the Davidsons, who apparently "couldn't make it". How did Haruhi know this? Simple, they had shown up at her door just as she was finishing breakfast, asking if she was ready to take them on a trip to the commoners' expo. _'Damn rich bastards,'_ Haruhi thought to herself, _'Ruining my weekend.' _It didn't help that her father had hidden all her clothes except her girlier ones, so now the club cooed at how cute she looked.

It was true that she had planned to stop by the expo, maybe even catch a glimpse of Riley, but she had not intended to spend the entire time dragging the club around, trying to keep them out of trouble.

Of course, the group became hungry soon, and insisted that Haruhi take them to a commoner's ice cream stand. She grumbled, but lead them over to a food court, all of them ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the different fast food being served. Finally, Haruhi dragged them into a line for ice cream, the person in front of them had bright orange headphones on, and she was listening to an ITouch.

They quickly became impatient, Haruhi constantly trying to calm them down. After a while, Hikaru and Kaoru both became bored, and decided to examine the girl in front of them. She was two inches or so shorter than them, and her blond hair was short and slightly spiky. She bobbed her head in time to the music, the front of her face not seen.

She wore designer clothing, which lead Hikaru and Kaoru to wonder what she was doing in a commoner's outlet mall. Her clothes were vibrant, and she wore a neon orange tank top covered by an equally neon green mini-hoodie. Her denim miniskirt was over orange and dark green striped leggings, and her Converse were a shade of highlighter lime green, a shade lighter than her mini-hoodie. Her green and orange bangles were mixed and jangled on her right hand, as she stepped forward to take her order, taking off her headphones and allowing them to rest on her neck like a necklace.

"She seems familiar," the twins mused, catching the other's attention.

Tamaki agreed, but was stumped. "I know I've seen that hair before…"

Hunny noticed, "She really likes bright clothing."

"Yeah."

Haruhi mulled it over in her head. It was on the tip of her tongue, but it couldn't be…

Her voice was a little low for a girl's, but still too high for a male's as she ordered, "One single scoop mint chocolate chip in a sugar cone, please." The voice was loud, without hesitation.

It clicked simultaneously for all the hosts. "Riley?!"

The girl turned around slowly, in mid-lick, revealing an amazing figure and huge emerald eyes with mascara and eyeliner, and one orange and one lime green clip in her hair. She gulped hard, chuckling nervously. "I have some explaining to do, don't I?"

* * *

Riley sighed as she sat down at the table, waiting for the Host Club to get settled, ignoring their complaints about how hard the commoners' seats were. She had already called Alex and Charlie, and they could be seen jogging towards the group. Kyoya walked behind them, surprised.

Alex wore a gray V-neck sweater, dark blue jeans, and black boots, her hair kept back with a black headband. Charlie had on a blue and green striped long-sleeved shirt, a pair of worn skinny jeans, and dark green Converse. Her hair was simply down.

Riley told them right off the bat as the new arrivals got settled, "Just to make sure we're clear, we aren't trannys, we're girls."

Alex rolled her eyes at Riley's comment. "Any questions before we explain?" she asked, her elegant eyes landing on every host one by one.

Tamaki piped up, "Kyoya, why didn't you tell us?"

"... I didn't know..." That was news for the club.

Charlie nodded. "We're registered as boys at Ouran."

"You see, it all began with a bet with our parents," Alex began, observing the hosts' reactions.

Riley continued, "Our parents love to mess with us, so they decided to bet a year's worth of Pocky that we couldn't go a year as boys in Ouran, and that stuff ain't cheap, you think."

Alex corrected her, "She meant to say, 'you _know_'."

"We accepted, got our hair cut, and figured that since no one knew us, it would be a breeze. But unfortunately, you all found out. Looks like Mom and Dad won," Charlie added.

The Host Club sweat dropped. Kaoru repeated, "Your parents bet you couldn't pass for boys?"

"Yup," Riley nodded, finishing her ice cream. "And face it, we had you all fooled."

Charlie told them, "I used my nickname to apply for Ouran. My real name is Charlotte."

"I'm Alexandria."

The hosts looked expectantly at Riley, who was taking the final bite of her sugar cone. "Hey don't look at me, my name really _is_ Riley."

"So, how did you hide your-" Hikaru bit his tongue, not comfortable with the subject, but wanting to know.

Haruhi offered, "Figure?" The rest of the club had to admit it had crossed their minds.

Alex shrugged, replying, "Medical tape and large shirts."

"Any more questions?" Riley asked.

"...You were girls all this time?!" Tamaki went off on a never-ending rant, complaining that they shouldn't have lied to Daddy like that, and something about wanting his girls to show the other students and blossom.

Kyoya ignored him, asking, "So, do you plan to continue to act as boys like Haruhi?"

"Well duh, it's kind of too late to back out now," Riley told him, watching as Tamaki paused, realizing he was being ignored.

Alexandria added, "And the bet was to pass off as boys at Ouran, so as long as thus little secret doesn't get out, we can still win."

"Daddy won't stand for this! You need to show the school and embrace your femininity! Be a good influence on Haruhi!"

Riley ignored Tamaki as she stood up from the table, telling everyone, "Well, it's been a blast, but I'm going back to the expo."

Hikaru and Kaoru smirked. "Good idea, we should all go together, and help you _ladies_ shop."

"Mommy! Those pesky doppelgangers are picking on my daughters!"

The Davidson sisters looked at each other briskly, and then curtly replied in harmony, "On second thought, I already have plans."

All three walked away in opposite directions, the Host Club watching, stunned. As the three girls disappeared into the crowd, Tamaki told the Host Club, "We need to spend some family time, and help my newest daughters embrace their femininity! Any ideas?"

Haruhi sighed, sinking into her chair as the club began brainstorming. This was going to be a very long school year.

* * *

**Disclaimer: We all know that secretly, Kyoya owns the copyright claims to OHSHC.**

**So, they're girls. And they did all of this... for Pocky :P. But as Riley mentioned, that stuff ain't cheap!**

**Continue to read, and I hope you all like it so far!  
**


	5. Preparing for the Scaring

Chapter 5

Preparing for the Scaring

"Haruu~hiiii! Guess what? C'mon, guess! Just guess! Do you have a guess yet? Guess, Haruhi! Guess!"

Haruhi's pencil lead snapped. She had been working on her report for science, but now that Riley was in homeroom, there was no hope in finishing it. She sighed as she decided to humor the girl. "What?"

Riley beamed as she settled into her seat, Hikaru and Kaoru late as usual. "Guess."

"What?" Haruhi asked a little sterner, almost demanding.

"Guess!"

"For Pete's sake, just tell me already, Riley!" Haruhi hadn't meant to snap, although it was barely more than a stern comment. For Haruhi, though, that was pretty tough.

Riley seemed unmoved as she yipped, giddy with excitement that perhaps even Tamaki couldn't match, "Halloween's in one week!"

"…"

"…"

"… That's it?"

Riley gaped. She pouted, "What do ya mean, 'that's it'?"

Haruhi sighed. She explained, turning to the front of the class to wait for homeroom to start, "I just don't see the point in Halloween, is all."

Riley mock-gasped. She certainly liked to ham it up. Her right hand was on her chest; her fingers sprawled out like a spider as she let her voice rise in a single word. "Whaaaa?"

"What's up, wacky?" Kaoru teased, taking his seat beside Riley as Hikaru took his beside Haruhi. The twins smirked at Riley's overdramatic expression.

She shook Haruhi violently by the shoulders, receiving quite a few looks from her fellow classmates. "Haruhi doesn't see the importance of Halloween!" she yelled, the whole class's attention caught.

"Haruhi never did," Hikaru rolled his eyes, already used to it. He watched as Riley let go of Haruhi's shoulders, allowing her to recover from the girl's violent shake. Riley may look skinny, but she packed some serious muscle.

"Ohohohoho!"

"WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?" Riley asked, looking in every possible direction.

"It's the otaku," the Hitachiin Twins grumbled, watching as Renge rose on her platform, cosplaying as Yuki from Vampire Knight.

Renge raised her hand triumphantly as the platform came to a stop. "Riley has brought up an excellent point!"

"I have?"

Renge hit another dramatic pose, explaining to the class with shining eyes, "Halloween is nearly upon us, and I believe it's time we start thinking of our class activity!"

"Hey, did the school give her permission to set up that platform? 'Cause that would be so cool if I-"

"Now then, who has an idea? Riley? The newest and boldest member of the Host Club?"

"Hey! The otaku cut me off!"

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. Of course, she knew Renge was bound to appear sometime. She asked the twins, "Class activity?"

Hikaru told her and Riley, "Yeah, the school gives us the day off after exams, and we get to do an activity that the class decides on."

Riley had a glint in her eye. "What _kind_ of activities?"

"Anything you can think of!" Renge popped out of the blue, scaring the crap out of the other students.

"A-as long as the, wh-whole class agrees," the class president stuttered, already nervous for the scary ideas they might think of.

Kids began spouting ideas immediately. "A costume contest!" "A bob for apples!" "Scavenger Hunt!" "Bonfire!"

Hikaru and Kaoru raised an eyebrow, repeating Riley's suggestion, "Bonfire?"

Riley shrugged. "I like watching stuff burn on Halloween."

"Uh-oh, wacky's a pyro-maniac!" the twins laughed, Riley turning angry. Those huge emerald eyes and her weird personality were certainly a disadvantage in that category.

Riley smirked. "Ha, ha. You laugh now, but wacky knows how to work a flamethrower." That silenced not only the Hitachiin Twins, but the rest of the class as well.

"Ho-how about a dance?" The class president hesitated, but immediately taking a few steps away from Riley. He was afraid of fires.

Hikaru and Kaoru pouted. "That's no fu-"

"Great! The Host Club will even sponsor a test of courage with a partner!"

Hikaru, Kaoru, and Haruhi simultaneously turned their heads toward the girl. "We will?"

Renge cooed, "How amazing! Let's get to work, right away!"

Kaoru whined to Riley, "Why did you agree with the class president? We wanted to scare him!"

Riley shrugged as she began to walk over to the group that was talking about their plans for the dance. "I see the way he looks at Momoka."

Hikaru turned to Kaoru as he asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Kaoru looked over to the club president, and how he stood by Momoka, glancing over at her and listening to her every word. He mumbled, "Kazukiyo has feelings for Momoka."

Hikaru's brow furrowed. "He does?"

"Well, isn't it obvious?"

Hikaru inwardly rolled his eyes. Apparently, Kaoru's definition of obvious and the rest of the world's definition were two totally opposite definitions.

* * *

"A Halloween dance for the whole school?" It did not take long for news to spread. The time had flew by, and it was now lunch, with the whole Host Club, except Haruhi, eating at a table, the three Davidson "brothers" seated as far apart as possible.

Riley nodded, answering Charlie's question with, "It's gonna be awesome! At first, it was just our class, but now the whole school is invited."

Kaoru added, an evil glint in his eyes, "And Riley volunteered the Host Club to hold a test of courage with a partner…"

Kyoya looked over to the said girl, who was taking a very unrefined and huge mouthful of pasta. "Oh, did she?"

"Fmfoalhreoufaldhfe."

"Eh?"

Charlie rolled her eyes. "Don't talk with your mouth full," she scolded. However, she was used to it, and translated, "Riley says that it's a good way to attract extra customers for the Host Club."

Alex nodded hesitantly, admitting, "She's right." She looked over to Kyoya, her elegant emerald eyes catching his gray eyes behind his glasses. "If you think about it, the idea of the chance to go through a test of courage with your favorite host to cling on to would be a very romantic and appealing idea for the girls. And the boys would want to show off."

Kyoya's glasses caught a glare as he slid them up the bridge of his nose. "Very well, we shall begin planning right away, after club activities today."

Hunny added, a bright and cheery smile on his face as he swallowed an entire cake, "But let's not make it too scary. We don't want the girls to be too afraid."

Hikaru and Kaoru exchanged an identical smirk. "Yes, it would be a shame if one of us happened to be paired with Haruhi and we had to protect her," they commented in sickly sweet and sarcastic voices, looking over to Tamaki expectantly.

Tamaki's inner mind theater was already well under way.

_3…2…1…_

_ A Hikaru and Haruhi in chibi form are walking down a dark, cobweb hallway. Suddenly, a ghost pops out, Haruhi squealing, "AH! Save me, Hikaru!" She precedes to glomp the boy, her eyes tightly shut._

_ Hikaru gets an evil glint in his eye and smirks, cooing in her ear, "Don't worry, Haru, I'll protect you."_

_ "Oh, Hikaru…"_

"NO! DADDY WON'T ALLOW IT!"

Riley got an identical evil glint in her eye as the Hitachiin's. She loved Halloween far too much to have one, melodramatic blonde idiot ruin her whole plan. "But Tamaki, that means you won't get the chance to go through it with Haruhi…"

"WE SHALL BEGIN PLANNING ASAP!"

* * *

**Disclaimer: Voila, done.**

**Not much to say, tired from homework... So, yeah, keep reading, and let me know what you think...  
**


	6. Jack O' Lantern Love

**Okay, this chapter is based _extremely_ on the Halloween episode in the anime. As in, I'm directly quoting for part of it. I _will_ do this for a few future chapters, because this is following their freshman year, a.k.a the first year Haruhi joined the club. However, they may be out of order, changed, etc, etc. But they will _always_ have a an original twist, by none other than me. Just enjoy! And while I'm at it...**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OCs.

* * *

**

Chapter 6

Jack-O'-Lantern Love

"Excellent," Riley purred in a sadistic voice, tapping her fingertips together in a very villainous way, the evil glint taking over both her eyes as she looked at the entrance of the hallway. It was dimly lit, with traps and special effects set up all along it, waiting for its victims.

Haruhi raised an eyebrow, commenting, "She's worse than Hikaru and Kaoru."

Charlie sighed, looking over to her half-insane sister. She explained, helping Haruhi set up a line of ropes to separate the girls and boys into lines, "Riley's always like this when it comes to Halloween. It's the one day of the year she can be officially crazy and get away with it."

Alex commented with a roll of her eyes, "And she's getting much too old to actually celebrate this childish behavior."

Hikaru and Kaoru popped out from behind a door. They both smirked at the "Hall of Courage", now set up and ready for the students once it became darker. Then they both made their way into the room, Tamaki already beginning to announce the cosplay.

"Let's have everyone get changed into their vampire costumes! I can't wait until the girls see us!" Tamaki cooed, forcing a bundle of clothing into everyone's hands.

Alex twitched, looking at the cape with disgust. "Absolutely not!"

Tamaki's eyes began to glisten with tears. "Wh-wh-why?"

"I will look like an idiot."

Riley teased, "Aw, come now, Alex! You don't need a costume to do that!" Only a second later was Riley yelling, "OW!" as Alex proceeded to knock her upside the head.

Charlie came between the two, holding Riley's flailing arms back as she hissed, "Enough already. Just wear the costume for an hour!"

"Oh Riiiiileeey!" The twins chorused, the girl stopping as she heard their voices, filled with mischief.

She turned around, the others leaving to change. "What?"

Hikaru smirked as he pulled out a special ensemble from behind his back. Kaoru shared his smirk. Riley gaped. "There is no way I'm wearing that, bakas. Everyone will know I'm a girl!"

"We can tell them it's just cosplay," Kaoru told her seductively, Hikaru's smirk growing. Because in his hands, he was holding a very… _provocative_ vampire costume for girls.

Riley grumbled as she stomped off to the changing rooms, the twins laughing at her as she mumbled, "Perverts."

* * *

As it turned out, the girls went gaga for the vampire cosplay, each host's slightly different. The curtains were closed, and the room was lit with candle's, creating a spooky but romantic feeling in the room. Every host's costume was almost exactly the same. However, Tamaki's cape had a light red ribbon on it, Hunny's had a pink, Mori's was green, and he wore a top hat, as did Kyoya, although his ribbon was purple. Hikaru's ribbon was blue, and Kaoru's was orange, while Haruhi's was a deep red, Charlie's was a brown, and Alex also wore a top hat (to try and conceal his identity) and his ribbon was gray.

"Where's Riley?" the girls asked, anxious and excited to see him in his costume.

"He's still changing," Tamaki stalled expertly, cooing, "But perhaps he won't mind if I take your neck for myself…"

"'Sup, party people?" Riley certainly made an entrance as she stepped into the room. Instead of a traditional costume, her cape and shoes were lime green, her cape coming to her waist, matching her Converse. She wore a bright blue dress vest over a white V-neck, and her bright blue, lime green, and purple striped socks came to her knees, as her black shorts stopped at just above her knees. The shorts were patched with electric blue, green, and purple patches. The club twitched.

Kyoya murmured, "That's a tad distracting…"

Charlie sighed, her and her older sister too used to it to truly be surprised. "Well, it certainly fits Riley."

Kaoru teased, "Oh, so you would wear that, but you wouldn't wear what we picked out for you?"

Riley hammed it up for his customers. "Pay no attention to them, ladies," she cooed, and then snapped towards Kaoru, "They're just jealous 'cause I came prepared and made mine awesomer than theirs."

* * *

Hosting went on as usual, until finally, the Halloween dance was about to start. Now it was time for the club members to change out of their costumes and operate and partake in the "Hall of Courage".

"Step right up! Come test your courage as you walk through the hall! And you may be able to go through it with a host!" the twins yelled as the line proceeded.

Riley watched with eagle eyes, scanning the line. Finally, Momoka was at the head of the line, and across from her was a boy from Class 2-B. Riley jumped in front of him, telling him, "Your shoe's untied!" As the boy looked down, Riley grabbed Kazukiyo's hand, shoving him and Momoka into the hall, yelling, "Well, would you look at that! Have a good time, you two!"

Haruhi sweat dropped. "Isn't that cheating?"

"Nooo… Now come on, you need to get in line, too!" She pushed Haruhi into the line, Charlie entering with some other girl. Tamaki's eyes sparkled as he came to the front, Haruhi right behind him, near the end.

"Haruhi and I can go toge-"

"NOPE! It's time for Hikaru's break, and he's going with Haruhi!" Before even Tamaki or the two involved could protest, Riley worked her matchmaking skills and shoved the two into the hall in much the same way she had shoved Kazukiyo and Momoka.

As Tamaki whimpered, the line finally came to an end, only Kaoru and Riley remaining on this end. The only way to the dance was through this hallway, and they looked at each other. Kaoru cracked a smirk. "Ready, partner?"

Kaoru had to admit he was slightly intimidated by the glint in Riley's eyes as she replied, "I was _born_ ready."

The two walked into the hall, now deserted. Kaoru commented, "So, do you think Kazukiyo and Momoka will work out?"

Riley stared ahead, barely blinking as a ghost made its way across the hall, fading into the wall. She shrugged, "I don't know. I think they still have to realize they like each other that way."

"Sounds like someone I know…" Kaoru mused.

"Yeah, Haruhi and Hikaru can be real idiots sometimes."

Kaoru stared at the girl in disbelief. "How did you know I was talking about them?"

Riley looked up at him, rolling her eyes. "Puh-lease. If I've ever seen two people secretly in love, its those two."

Kaoru stared off ahead, ignoring a giant spider coming down from the ceiling. So, Riley knew about the two. But the more surprising thing was, she was actually doing something to bring them together…

"Earth to Kaoru!" Riley waved her hand frantically in front of the boy's face, both of them reaching the ballroom the dance would be held in.

Kaoru snapped out of his daze, instantly finding Hikaru. The twins then forced Haruhi and Riley to dance with them, Riley busting a few hip-hop moves that the club had never seen before.

Charlie laughed at their slightly shocked faces, explaining, "While I'm training to be a chef, and Alex is training to be a business woman, Riley's busy with becoming a performer."

Suddenly, just as the dance was beginning to kick off, there was a black out, and the girls began screaming as if it was the end of the world.

"Okay, calm down, people! The worst that can happen is a demon pops out and massacres us all!"

Alex rolled her eyes. "You're not helping, Riley."

As usual, it was up to Kyoya to fix the situation. "Please proceed to the nearest exit to the rest of the school, as it seems only this room's lights are out."

The group of students followed his calm orders, stumbling in the dark as they made their way to the outside hallway. Somehow, though, Haruhi and Hikaru managed to get locked in a closet, while Kaoru, Riley, and the class president were locked in a science room.

Charlie noticed their absence first. "Where did those four go off to now?"

Momoka appeared in front of the hosts, a worried look on her face. "No one says they've seen the class president. Do you all know where he is?"

"We must find Haruhi and the others! Everyone, begin searching!" Tamaki proclaimed, already running off to assemble the search parties.

* * *

"Huh? Where are we? Haruhi?"

"Yeah, Hikaru?"

"Kaoru?"

Silence.

"Oh god, KAORU!" Hikaru began to bang on the door, jiggling the handle, and so on. The room was tight, and he kept bumping into Haruhi.

"Hikaru! Hikaru, calm down! Hika- ARGH!" Just as she was about to grab his arm, Hikaru let the handle go, but stumbled backwards, landing so that now Haruhi was lying against the floor, the boy propped up on his elbows, right on top of her.

Hikaru blushed as Haruhi's breathing was dangerously close to his face. He tried to stand up, but found that the closet was too small to stand up. "Eh, sorry Haru…" His blush grew.

"It's okay. This position is a bit uncomfortable, but I'll survive."

"… Where do you think Kaoru is?"

"I don't know, probably with the others."

"I hope he's all right…"

"He'll be fine, Hikaru. It's just a school.

"Haruhi?"

"Yeah?"

"... How long do you think we'll be stuck like this?"

"Hopefully not too long."

"Are you saying that you hate being alone with me?"

"Don't start that, Hikaru."

* * *

At the same time, Kaoru, Kazukiyo, and Riley were now locked in a science classroom, Kaoru furiously trying to open the door. "Great, we're locked in here until someone finds us," he muttered, sliding against the wall and down to the floor, next to the class president, who was too busy silently freaking out to notice.

Riley walked up to the door, shaking her head. "You do it like this." She raised her right leg, beginning to kick open the door while yelling in a very ninja-like way, "Hiiiiyaaah!" However, her foot didn't make contact. "Hiiiiyaaah- Oh jeez!" Instead of kicking the door, which still wouldn't have done anything, Riley's foot continued to send her spinning, causing her to hit the floor, while letting out an "Oof!"

Kaoru chuckled as he helped her up, rolling his eyes.

"Thanks, Kaoru," Riley brushed herself off, the class president's head perked up.

Kazukiyo asked with curiosity, "Eh? You can tell them apart?"

Kaoru looked to the girl, realizing that she had always called him Kaoru. Riley shrugged. "Sure, but isn't it obvious?"

Kaoru and the class president sweat dropped, Riley taking a seat across from them as Kaoru slid back down, next to the class president.

"So, are you scared to death?" Kaoru asked Kazukiyo, slightly interested.

"A-a little…"

Riley nodded, smiling. "Don't worry, the worst that can happen is-"

"That's not going to help, Riley," Kaoru cut her off.

"Oh, right…"

The class president couldn't help but chuckle a bit. At least now he wasn't quite as scared.

"So, where do you think Hikaru is?" Kaoru asked, a hint of worry making its way into his voice.

Riley leaned back onto her elbows, mumbling, "If I managed to pick the right people in the dark, then he's with Haruhi and has been shoved in an _extremely _small closet."

"You shoved my twin into a closet?"

"With Haruhi!"

"Oh, so at least he has Fujioka to keep him company…" the class president mused. Riley bit her lip, realizing she had almost suggested that either Haruhi was a girl, or Hikaru was gay.

"Riiight, let's go with that…"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "So how did we end up here?"

Riley snapped up, sitting straight as a stick, her eyes staring a hole through Kazukiyo. "This is an intervention! Kazukiyo, you and I are going to talk about how you feel about Momoka, although I didn't plan on Kaoru 'tripping' with us into here…"

The class president was frozen. "Wh-what?"

Riley kept staring straight at him, explaining slowly, "You need to learn how to get Momoka!"

Kazukiyo smiled, telling her, "Well, that's nice of you, Riley, but really, I don't want that."

"EH?" Kaoru and Riley stared at the boy.

He explained, "After all, Momoka really likes Haruhi and you, Riley."

Riley thought to herself, _I wonder what would happen if she found out that made her a lesbian…_

Kazukiyo continued, Kaoru and Riley listening with interest. "It doesn't seem like Haruhi has much of an interest in her, but they may end up falling in love. Do you like, Momoka, Riley?"

"Oh, no, I'm straight."

"What?"

Kaoru covered for her, shooting her a quick glance, "Nothing, Riley's just joking around. _Right_, Riley?"

"Yeah! Yes! Totally! That's it! Mhmm! 100% true! Just-"

"He gets it, Riley."

"Sorry."

Kaoru told the class president, "Although, Haruhi falling in love with Momoka will definitely never happen."

"Why not?"

"It just won't," Kaoru and Riley reassured him, the class president glancing at both of them. Perfect harmony, strange.

The class president ignored it, staring down, twiddling his thumbs. "Now, it might sound like I'm making excuses, but I honestly don't want anything to change between me and Momoka right now. I'm happy just to be on the class committee and in class with her. Right now, I don't want to ruin our friendship."

Kaoru leaned back against the wall, thinking about the theory he had thought of earlier in class, with a magic spell on a carriage to keep things the same they were. "So, in other words, Kazukiyo, that's your spell on the carriage. Sure, that way of thinking is fine. If you can keep running that way, it's not so bad. I'm sure that keeping a family setting, with fathers and daughters, is tono's magic spell, to keep our current relationships from being ruined."

"Eh?"

"Neither his highness, nor us, had ever played with many other friends. He wants to enjoy things the way they are now as much as he can, and so do I."

The class president was now utterly confused. "Sorry, but what are we talking about?"

Kaoru continued, "But, at some point, there's a good chance that it will turn into a muddy pumpkin."

Riley nodded, seeming in a far off place. "I get it. Like when I argue with Alex and Charlie, and we all argue and yell at each other, it's because we don't want things to change. I don't want Alex to go off to college, and marry his fiancée, or Charlie to attend a boarding school for chefs. But someday, we'll be separated. But I just want us to stay together, to be a family again…"

Kaoru listened, slightly shocked at how deep Riley was being. Kazukiyo, however, was still out of the loop. "Really? What _are_ you two going on about?"

"KAORU!" The door slammed open to reveal a very distressed Hikaru, yelling.

"Hikaru!" The boy ran to his twin, both sharing an embrace.

"Looks like we're saved. And look, even Momoka was looking for you, class president…" Riley commented as she walked out of the room, seeing a group of students, including Haruhi, standing behind the door.

Momoka looked genuinely concerned as she asked, "Are you okay, Kazukiyo?"

"I'm fine," he told her, smiling and slightly blushing. She smiled back, telling him she was glad that he wasn't hurt.

Riley went over and teased Haruhi, "So, did you have a good time with Hikaru?"

"You know about that?"

"Who do you think pushed you?"

Charlie and Alex ran up to Riley, scolding, "Where were you?"

"In Alaska with a unicorn," her voice dripped with sarcasm. She sighed, "In the science room, geniuses."

Charlie slightly smiled. "Glad you're okay."

"You had me scared there, for a second…" Alex mumbled, awkwardly ruffling her hair.

Kaoru glanced over to Riley, who was smiling. He smiled. They finally resembled a family. Tamaki came running in, smothering Haruhi, and was then pried off of her by Riley and Charlie. Tamaki declared, "It's getting late. We should all head home!"

The students slowly dissolved, heading towards their cars. Kazukiyo was stopped by Momoka, who asked him, "Kazukiyo, I heard that you only put up with the 'Hall of Courage' for the sake of the class. Is that true?"

The class president stuttered, "Uh… well… uhm… gomen."

"How big of you! I have a new-found respect for you." And with that, Momoka continued to walk with the now blushing class president, bubbling various praises and comments.

Kaoru watched with Hikaru, Haruhi, and Riley. "Nice mood, huh?" he commented. "I guess the spell on the carriage can't go on forever, after all."

Hikaru looked over to his twin, asking, "What are you talking about?"

Kaoru thought back to his conversation with Riley, and then to a few times that Hikaru showed fairly obvious affection for Haruhi over him. Then he mumbled as he remembered how panicked Hikaru had looked as he slammed open the doors to the science room, "Well, if you ran towards me in that situation, I guess it's still all right."

"Huh?" Hikaru was still confused.

Riley winked to the younger twin, smirking, "You had to be there."

Kaoru chuckled, while ushering Haruhi and Hikaru to go in front of him, "Nothing, it's a joke between Riley and me. Come on, come on, I want to get home."

Riley walked beside Kaoru, and watched as he slowly took his hands off his friends' shoulders, stopping as they continued to walk, talking. Kaoru thought, standing there, _Still, when Hikaru… starts realizing he wants to take the next step forward… Once that happens, what am I going to do?_

Riley stood beside him, not saying a word. She understood exactly what he was going through. She looked up at him, mumbling, "Now imagine having to see that, with two sisters, every day."

Kaoru looked down at the girl, realizing this was already happening to her. "Riley-"

"Come on! Those two lovebirds are going to leave us behind! And I wanted to take the subway with Haruhi today!" The girl seemed to regain her old self, grabbing Kaoru's wrist as she ran towards the two, smiling.

Kaoru smiled at her. He would get through it. After all, Riley was beginning to.


	7. A Day in the Life of the Davidson Family

**Just to show you guys I'm not dead, I'm updating. DX So sorry about that exceptionally long break, I was doing a little searching inside of me for some more willpower. Anyways, enjoy! **

* * *

Chapter 7

A Day in the Life of the Davidson Family

_The Host Club stood in shock, their limos behind them. Before them, past the iron gate with a huge, golden cursive "D" on it, was not just one huge house, but three slightly smaller houses._

_ "Are you sure this is the right place, tono?"_

_ Tamaki blinked in disbelief, checking the slip of paper he had written the address on. He stuttered, "Yes, this is it."_

_ Haruhi blinked. She muttered, "I didn't think they hated each other so much that they lived in three separate houses."_

_ The group opened up the gate, and by group I mean Mori, and continued up the cobblestone path. The houses were all different, and the hosts stared in confusion as the path branched off into three different directions. The house on the far right was large and elegant, with a small courtyard greeting it's guests. A small sign was nailed into the ground, reading, "Alexandria's House"._

_ The house on the far left was the total opposite. It was painted a lime green, blue, and purple, with random objects pasted on the walls and in the front yard. The pineapple-shaped mailbox had Riley's name written on it sloppily in green paint._

_ The middle home looked elegant, but not overly fancy. The front yard was neat, and it looked inviting. It was almost like the Suoh 2__nd__ Mansion, but smaller and with less marble. There was a sign in one of the windows in neat cursive that could only belong to Charlie, "Charlotte's Home. All are welcome!"_

_ "Which one should we go to? I brought cakes for all of them," Hunny mused, holding the small box close to his chest. All the houses seemed to be lived in, but looked as though no one was home._

_ Tamaki began walking straight to Charlie's house, telling his fellow club members, "We'll stop by Charlotte's living quarters, she'll be sure to distribute the cakes evenly. Now, don't mention anything about the sisters being separated, we shouldn't be rude."_

_ The gang made their way to the door, Kyoya ringing the doorbell. A very pretty Charlotte answered the door, wearing a pink and sky blue sundress, a small and forced smile on her face. She greeted them, allowing them to come inside, "I didn't expect you all to come today. You should've called, I could've tried to get Riley and Alex to stay at their houses."_

_ The group said nothing as they followed the girl to a living room. Finally, Kyoya spoke up, "If this is a bad time, we can leave…"_

_ "No, no, you're guests! Please, take a seat," she urged them, walking over to a kitchen. It was huge, perfect for a chef. Charlie came back out, a tea tray in her hands._

_ Haruhi asked, "Where are Alex and Riley?"_

_ Charlie sighed, taking a seat and a cup of tea. "Don't you remember? Alex moved out yesterday, and Riley is going to live with our uncle in Italy."_

_ "WHAT?!"_

Tamaki awoke with a start, panting. _Good, it was only a dream_, he thought as he glanced around his room. But it seemed so real, and Tamaki had a hunch that it was the exact way that the Davidson sisters lived. He rushed to put on his school uniform, knowing that it was his duty as the "father", to ask Charlie about it and make sure his daughters were fine.

"Good morning, Young Master Tamaki," Maezono Shima, the chief of staff at the Suoh 2nd Residence greeted the blond as he made his way down the elegant stairs and red carpet, towards the front door.

Tamaki adjusted his tie as he paused, looking towards his driver, who was standing among the line of maids and servants, as he explained in an official tone, "I'm leaving at once. Please bring the car around immediately."

"Yes, master."

Shima spoke up, her face and tone stoic as Tamaki continued on his way, "Begging your pardon, Tamaki, but what will you have for breakfast?"

Tamaki screeched, waving his arms wildly, "Ah, enough! There's no time for that!" He made his way dramatically, the back of his left hand slightly above his forehead, thinking to himself, _My head is filled with a dreadful foreboding right now. Out of regard for their privacy, I have not sought to intrude into club members' private lives. However, if Charlie is really living so alone, and Alex and Riley are really that separated, then I have to see them right away, and find out the truth of the matter. I have to get to school!_

This time, Shima was sterner. "Begging your pardon, Tamaki! You are still half-dressed in pajamas, and you still have house slippers on your feet," she pointed out, Tamaki stopping just as his driver opened the door for him politely.

Tamaki stood frozen for a moment, then yelled in frustration as he sprinted past Shima and the line of servants up the stairs and back to his room, perhaps setting a world record for changing as he came back moments later, now fully dressed in his uniform.

Shima scolded as he walked back down the stairs, "My, what poor manners." Tamaki continued walking towards the door, panting.

Now slightly embarrassed, he cleared his throat. "All right, once again, I will be off."

Shima interrupted him as he returned to walking towards the door, "Sincerely begging your pardon, Tamaki, but today is Sunday, so there is no school today." Tamaki froze.

He turned towards the elderly chief of staff, speaking softly. "Shima, couldn't you have told me that at the very start?" he asked, slowly getting closer to the shorter women, her face and eyes in a slight scowl.

She replied smartly in her monotone, "Your maidservant only wishes daily for the Master to grow up and be a fine gentleman, capable of realizing his own mistakes." She proceeded to drag Tamaki off by the collar of his jacket and shirt, the boy struggling as she continued, "If you have no other plans, come and study your manners with me."

"I have other plans! I have other plans!" Tamaki protested, his arms constantly flailing outwards, as if trying to grab something to save him from a lesson with Shima. His good-hearted maids giggled at the scene. Tamaki was now desperate. "Somebody, bring me the phone!"

"Here!" A petite brunette in the pink maids' uniform popped out of nowhere, a phone with a cord resting on a purple pillow in her hands. Tamaki quickly wriggled out of Shima's grasp, kneeling and dialing the old-fashioned phone that was now on the ground, the maid standing with a cute smile in front of him.

Shima watched him irritably. "Tch..." She once again thought that Tamaki needed a lesson on manners, and waited to see if his plan would be ruined.

Tamaki waited intensely as he heard the phone on the other line ring once, and was then picked up. "Kyoya, is that you? I need to discuss something important with you."

* * *

The club members stepped out of the limo, Haruhi grumbling, seeing as how the twins had pretty much kidnapped her and forced her to come to the Davidson's home.

Tamaki let out a deep breath as he looked past the wrought iron gate with a cursive "D", revealing only one mansion that was slightly smaller than his. _At least they all live in one house_, he thought.

"Eh? So this is where Riley lives?" Hikaru and Kaoru observed it.

Hunny cheered, holding a box of cakes, "I hope they like the cakes I brought!"

Tamaki turned towards Kyoya, irritated. "Kyoya, what's with all these people? Especially those two doppelgangers!"

Kyoya's glasses caught a glare. He pondered, "Oh, I was sure that you didn't have the courage to come alone, so it would be better if we came en masse." He began to usher the twins and Haruhi back to the limo. "I guess that was uncalled for. Okay, children, let's go home."

The twins protested in unison, "No way! I don't want to go home!"

Tamaki stopped Kyoya, realizing he was right. "I'm sorry. Forgive me. I don't want to be alone."

As the club made their way up the paved path, Tamaki ordered sternly, "Listen up. Do not forget…" As they reached the door, he hit his signature pose, explaining gravely, "This is just a 'we happened to be passing by' sort of nonchalant visit, and is definitely _not_ research on how the Davidson family lives! The words 'separated', 'strange', and 'stupid' are absolutely forbidden!"

"Yes sir!" the twins and Hunny chorused, the three and Mori giving Tamaki a salute. Kyoya simply stood there nonchalantly, and Haruhi was thinking, _Why am I here?_

Tamaki continued, "Under no circumstances are you to say or do anything to make Riley, Charlotte, Alexandria, or their parents wish that we would leave."

"Eh, what are you all doing here?" Charlie opened up the door, wearing a light blue tube top, white cardigan, a floral print skirt, and creamy flats. Two pink clips kept her bangs back.

"Charlotte!" Tamaki snapped back to reality.

"Very girly, looking good!" Hunny, the twins, and Tamaki chorused.

Charlie rolled her eyes, shaking her head slightly. She looked over at Haruhi, raising an eyebrow. The girl mumbled, "I was forced to come." Charlie nodded, chuckling.

"Well, come in, come in," she gestured them to come inside, and the group followed her orders, looking around. Tamaki let out another deep breath, as he saw no boundaries or territories separating the rooms. The entryway was classy, with a white marble floor and creamy walls, a small stone cabinet off to the left with a collection of family photos hanging above it. There was a staircase to their right, leading to a second floor, but Charlie led them past it and to a large and cozy living room, with earth tones and leathers. A huge T.V. was hung on the far wall, and Charlie smiled as she told them to make themselves comfortable.

Hunny told her, smiling as he held out the box of cakes, "I brought you some cakes! There's strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate! Can we have them now, please?"

Charlie smiled faintly, nodding. "Let me just go make some tea and put these on a tray. I'll be right back." She accepted the box of cakes thankfully and made her way past a large archway to a huge kitchen.

Before she had disappeared, Hikaru asked, "Eh, why don't you get your chefs to do it?"

Charlie chuckled at Tamaki scolding him for being rude, shaking her head. She told them, "Please, we're a family of fine cooking, and I'm training to be a chef. Like I'm really going to let my parents hire a cooking staff? And I'm sorry there are no maids or servants to take your coats, they always get Sundays off."

Haruhi was the only one not the least bit stunned by this fact. She thought it was a nice gesture, to let their workers have a day off, but the rest of the club thought it was unheard of.

They waited patiently, quietly examining the room. Suddenly, they heard a voice yell out, "Charlie! How long do I have to wear this stupid dress?" It was no doubt Riley.

Charlie's voice could be heard from the kitchen as she yelled back, "Until Dad gets home tonight! You lost the bet, so you have to wear it! And don't be rude, we have guests!"

"Who?"

"Come down and see!"

"… You just want them to see me in a dress!"

Charlie walked out of the archway, rolling her eyes. In her hands was a tray filled with the small cakes, a teapot, and a few China cups. She set it down on the coffee table, apologizing to the hosts, "Sorry, Riley doesn't have many manners."

"Seriously, who are they?"

Charlie sighed, excusing herself for a minute, the hosts watching with interest as she stomped off to a staircase hidden halfway by a wall. A slight struggle and argument was heard, until finally, Charlie was yanking Riley along with her down the staircase, in front of the hosts. Riley stared at them, and they stared back, gaping.

Riley was forced to wear a spring green and sky blue spaghetti strap sundress that came to her knees, a white headband in her hair, blue, green, and yellow dangly flower earrings, and off-white strappy high-heel sandals, and very girly makeup. The hosts had to admit, even if she was furious, she looked amazing. Riley hissed, "You speak of this to _no one_ if you want to live."

"Aw, Riley, you look so cuuute!" Tamaki and the twins cooed.

"Shut up! ARGH!" Riley was grabbed by Hikaru and Kaoru, who forced her to sit on the couch between them, cooing and hugging her.

Charlie laughed, taking a seat in a leather chair with a cup of gray tea. "So, why did you all decide to visit?"

Kyoya smiled as he took a sip of tea, "Oh, we just wanted to pass by and see what you were up to."

"Hey, Four Eyes, I have a question for you," Riley grumbled, Hikaru and Kaoru glomping her. She pointed above her to the twins, "How do you make them stop?"

"Aw, wacky's annoyed!"

"STOP ALREADY!"

Haruhi ignored them, asking Charlie, who was sitting across from her, "Where are your parents and Alex?"

"Well, Mom is working late these days, seeing as how she's planning the grand opening of her first restaurant in Japan in Tokyo in a week. Dad usually works until dinner at his talent agency, but Alex is with him being trained, although she's due to pick up her lunch in a few minutes…"

Riley froze, the twins letting her go as soon as they felt her body tense. "You made Alex lunch today?" she asked. The club got ready for a fight, watching between the two sisters.

"Yes…"

"… Did you put a sugar cookie in it?"

"… Nooo…"

"CHARLIE-MADE SUGAR COOKIE!" Riley jumped off of the couch, running awkwardly towards the kitchen counter in her heels, where a bento box sat.

Charlie palmed her forehead. "Good heavens, I've unleashed a monster…" She looked up towards Mori. "Mori, I hope you don't mind, but once she finds that cookie, she's going to go on a hunting spree and won't stop until she ruins my kitchen entirely. Do you mind helping me restrain her?"

"Sure."

The group followed behind them slightly, watching from a safe distance in the archway. Riley opened up the bento box, her eyes gleaming. The group managed to see a very organized and well-prepared lunch inside, looking as if a professional chef had taken at least an hour to make it.

Tamaki stared in awe. "My little Charlotte made that?" His inner mind theater was already at work, imagining what would happen if Charlie was his wife and was giving him his own Charlie-made lunch, with a heart-shaped sugar cookie in the center.

"Now, Mori!" Mori held Riley's hands behind her back as she munched on the cookie, a smile growing on her face as she let the sweetness take over her senses.

Charlie sighed as she disappeared behind a wall, probably hiding a pantry, and walked back to the open bento box with another neat and perfect looking sugar cookie.

"Can I have another? Pleeeeeeeeease?"

"No, Riley."

"Come on! I'm wearing the dress! And I'm sure the others want to try one of your cookies from heaven!"

"… Flattery will get you nowhere."

Hunny looked up at Charlie, his huge eyes shining as he cheered, "Actually, I would like to try a homemade cookie, Charlotte."

Charlie smiled, unable to resist those huge, brown eyes. "Okay, okay, let me get them out. You can all go back to the living room. And please, call me Charlie."

Tamaki, the twins, Hunny, and Riley bounced up and down with excitement, cheering, "YAY! Sugar cookies!"

They made their way back to their seats, Riley not even noticing that she was sitting _extremely_ close to Kaoru, making him blush slightly as he couldn't help noticing.

Haruhi looked at the platter that Charlie had set down on the coffee table next to the cakes. She hesitantly took one, and the club seemed to take a bite simultaneously. Haruhi felt like she had died and gone to heaven, her eyes shining as she ate the cookie.

"Do you like them? I think I added too much salt. Did I?" Charlie bit her lip nervously.

Haruhi stared in sight awe at the cookie, and how the club had immediately been silenced by the goodness. She looked at Charlie, and with sincere honesty, told her, "You have to give me the recipe for this."

Charlie smiled, letting out a deep breath as the club continued to munch on the cookies in approval. Riley told her with a full mouth, "Seriously, Charlie, stop doubting yourself!"

Before the girl could snap at her, the door opened, and Alex's voice rang through the mansion. "I'm here to pick up my lunch!"

Charlie hopped up out of her seat, walking through the archway and coming back out with the bento box. Alex came in, wearing a white ruffle blouse under a black jacket, a black pencil skirt, and black high heels.

Alex stared at the hosts, unconsciously receiving the bento box from Charlie, whispering, "What are they doing here?"

"They just stopped by. Oh, and Charlie lost the bet Dad made with her."

Alex grinned evilly, and headed back to the entryway. While Riley was still distracted, she came back with a small, digital camera and took a picture, Riley snapping back to reality when she heard the click of the camera.

"GIVE ME THAT CAMERA!" Riley started to try and run after her, but stumbled, not used to high heels.

Alex rolled her eyes, stashing the camera in her small and official briefcase. She put the bento box under her arm, and bid the hosts a quick goodbye before walking briskly out of the room, and closing the door.

Riley grumbled, "This is why I don't wear dresses…"

As the group began to finish the afternoon tea and snacks, Kyoya stood up. "It was very kind of you to let us stay for awhile. But it looks like it's time for us to leave."

The hosts agreed, standing up and yelling goodbyes as they made their way to the door. Tamaki was the last one to leave, as he stood in the entryway, looking at a family photo of the Davidson family in a gilded frame.

The photo was taken at a beach, when the Davidson sisters were younger. Riley looked to be seven-years old, and was in shorts, a T-shirt, and flip-flops. Even as a child, she loved vibrant clothing. Her hair was long and straight, and pulled back into two pigtails, her eyes shining. Riley stood, front and center, her arms spread out wide and her left leg up, like a star, her tongue sticking out.

Charlie's hair was shorter, and was in a small braid that came to her mid-back. She was eight, and she appeared to be laughing loudly at her sister's strange pose, standing behind her. She wore a deep red jacket, jean shorts, and flip-flops.

Alex stood calmly to Charlie's right, her hair cut so it reached her shoulders. She smiled slightly as she looked at Riley and Charlie, her eyes mature even when she was nine. She wore a simple sundress and sandals.

Their parents stood behind them, tall and proud, smiling at their daughters. Their father was a tall man, with light brown hair and emerald eyes. He wore a sweatshirt and board shorts, his sunglasses propped like a headband in his short, curly brown hair. Their mother stood faithfully beside him, her blue eyes bright and shining, and her blond hair long and flowing around her. She wore a floral print sundress, and her smile was kind and warm.

"You know, that's my favorite picture," Charlie stood beside Tamaki, admiring the photo.

Tamaki smiled at her. "Your mother is very pretty, and your father is extremely handsome."

"Arigato. But, I was referring to the fact that we actually look like a family in this picture."

Tamaki looked back to the photo. They really did. Charlie continued, smiling, "Sometimes, when we get into a huge argument, we all come and take a look at this photo, and it reminds us that we're still family. Then we seem to forgive each other. But I'm probably just boring you, you better get back to the others."

Tamaki smiled down at her. "Actually, it was nice to learn more about you. Have a good day, Charlotte."

She watched as he began to make his way back to his limo, but then piped up, "Please, call me Charlie!"

Tamaki turned back towards her, a charming smile on his face. "I love the name, Charlotte. It's pretty, like you," he told her, his grin growing. He then continued on his way, Charlie standing in the doorway. She felt warmth creeping into her cheeks, and sure enough, she was blushing. She couldn't help but smile widely, watching the blond.

As she turned back towards the kitchen and living room, Riley still stood from her hiding spot, on the stairs, half-hidden behind a wall. No one had even noticed her. "I should be a ninja," she mumbled to herself. But know was not the time for that. Now, Riley had to go and tease Charlie about her obvious (obvious to Riley, at least) crush on the blond king. Indeed, revenge was sweet.

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't even own/know the recipe Charlie uses for her awesome cookies, much less OHSHC.**

**Aw, so sweet at the end! XD **

**Anyway, yes, this is another spin-off episode. But hey, this is fun to do. So now you know a little bit more about the Davidsons. **

**I bet you can guess the relationships at this point. :/ Because I'm that obvious. If you can't, then I'm not telling :P. 'Cuz I want it to be a surprise. But seriously, it really is obvious.**

**Again, gomen! I think half of you probably thought I was dead, or something. Enjoy!  
**


	8. Host Hopping

Chapter 8

Host Hopping

"Oh great, Haruhi, now we're late!" Riley chased after her brunette friend, trying to balance her school bag on her shoulder.

Haruhi muttered, "We'll never hear the end of it if we're late…" The two girls had been studying for their history exam in the library.

Now, I know what you're thinking. Riley… studying? It seemed impossible, but just earlier that same day, Riley asked if Haruhi could help her cram for the test. Unfortunately, Riley wasn't gifted in academics, and needed Haruhi's tutoring. It also created another opportunity to bug the scholarship student, Haruhi soon learned.

Running through the hallways, Riley soon ran ahead of Haruhi, who wasn't the fastest runner. As Haruhi rounded the corner, she saw that Riley had opened the door, and was standing, wide-eyed and gaping. "What's wro-" Haruhi stood still in shock as the room came into view.

"What the heck did they do?!" Riley finally yelled, breaking the silence. The music room had been transformed into a southern country retreat. There were plants _and_ animals, real live animals, from exotic locations. The girls stared in shock as a toucan flew past them and landed on a palm tree. Riley could only burst out, "And the school _let_ them do all this?!"

The six boys chorused, "Welcome."

Haruhi twitched. _Can you see this from heaven, Mom?_ she thought.

Riley watched as a large boa constrictor made its way up a tree trunk just a few inches away. "EEEP!" Haruhi snapped out of her thoughts, and just as she was about to calm Riley down, a toucan landed on Haruhi's head with a loud squawk.

The twins looked at the two, holding tall umbrellas. They chorused, "You two finally made it. You're so late. And where are Charlie and Alex?"

Riley answered nonchalantly, "She was helping me study. And Charlie is with Mom, helping her with the grand opening, and Alex is with Dad on an important business trip for her training. They both get to miss school for a little more than a week." Her eyes widened at their bare chests. _Oh gosh, can't they just throw on a shirt or something?_

Haruhi ignored them and took out her student planner, mumbling, "I could be wrong, but my calendar says it's still early winter."

Tamaki took this as his cue to explain dramatically. With a fan in his hand, he hit a montage of poses, cooing, "Huddling over a kotatsu fearing the cold weather is nonse-"

"What's a kotatsu?" Riley interrupted.

Kyoya explained quickly and calmly, looking up at Riley, "A kotatsu is a low, wooden table frame covered by a heavy blanket, upon which a table top sits. You've probably never heard of one, considering they're mainly only in Japan."

Riley raised an eyebrow at the accurate and seemingly rehearsed definition. She asked sarcastically, "What, do you have Wikipedia on that clipboard?"

"What?" Kaoru asked.

"American thing, never mind. Continue, Tamaki."

"Yes, well… And besides, the heating system we have is (insert dramatic pose with fan spread out and back facing Riley and Haruhi) the best!"

Kyoya looked up from his clipboard after hearing Haruhi snort. "Do you have a problem with how we run our club, Haruhi? Be careful what you say, you owe us 8 million yen, remember?"

If only Alex was here to warn her. Riley whispered, "Exactly how did you break that vase, again?"

Haruhi thought back to the incident, picturing the vase falling and bursting into a million pieces. "I'd rather not talk about it…"

Tamaki, apparently wanting all the attention on him, explained, using his fan once again for emphasis, "Gentlemen don't bundle up in bulky clothing. It may be chilly and early winter out there in the real world-"

"Actually, that's the world I prefer to live in, so I think I'm just going to take a seat." Riley would've done something more dramatic, but she was still in a bad mood after Alex and Charlie got to skip school and she didn't, and she was tuckered out from studying.

Tamaki froze, and then went to his emo corner. Glad that he had finally shut up, Haruhi picked up a tray of drinks and went around the tables, replacing the fruity blends. She passed by Tamaki's table as he announced, "Oh, and I almost forgot to mention to you ladies. Next week the Ouran Host Club is sponsoring a an early party for the Holidays before Winter Break."

"Party?!" Riley immediately perked up.

One of the twins' customers asked in a delicate voice, "What kind of party is it going to be? Is it going to be formal?"

Hikaru leaned sideways in his chair, explaining, "Yes, in fact we've rented the school's largest ballroom."

"It's the perfect place for dancing," Kaoru added, his chin resting on right wrist. Riley watched, and she blushed a bit at the fact that she had caught herself staring. She then rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what was coming next.

Hikaru lifted Kaoru's chin upwards, their eyes meeting. "But you know, Kaoru, I wanted to spend some time alone with you…"

"Don't be upset, Hikaru… I know exactly how you feel…"

"AAHHH! BROTHERLY LOVE!"

Haruhi commented, standing with Kyoya a few feet away from where Riley sat, "The guests seem to be more worked up than they usually are."

"Yeah, they're like squirrels on coffee mixed with pixie sticks," Riley added, sipping a pink smoothie from her stool at a juice hut the club had installed.

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "An interesting simile, Riley…" He continued writing on his clipboard, commenting, "Showing some skin proves popular with the ladies."

Riley mumbled, "Try saying that five times fast." Then proceeded to take on her own challenge, muttering, "Showing some skin proves popular with the ladies; showing some skin proves popular with the ladies; showing some skin proves popupwarouleaf- ARGH, gotta start over…"

Haruhi ignored her, holding the tray in her hands. She asked Kyoya, "So are you the one who came up with this tropical paradise idea?"

"I have no decision-making authority. All the club's cosplays have been chosen by the club king, Tamaki." He adjusted his glasses, a fake smile on his face. "_But_, I guess there's no harm to admitting to casually slipping a Bali photo book onto his desk…"

_So he's the real brains behind the operation_, Haruhi thought. Meanwhile, a faint murmur could be heard in the background: "Showing some skin proves popular with the ladies; showing some skin proves popular with the ladies; showing some skin proves popular with ladies; showing some skin proves popular wippouaoerhjlae- ARGH! This is harder than I thought it would be…"

* * *

Haruhi watched as two girls cooed at how adorable Hunny looked, and how cute it was that he had climbed up Takashi to put matching flowers around his neck. "Um, Haruhi?" She was snapped out of her daze by one of her customers asking her a question. "Aren't you and Riley going to wear a tropical outfit like the other boys?"

Riley sat next to her, seeing as how they were put together by the other club members because they couldn't/ wouldn't wear a tropical outfit. Haruhi stuttered, "Ur, well, no… I just don't think it's appropriate to wear anything but early winter attire in early winter, you know?"

"That, and my mom wouldn't approve of me walking around without a shirt on," Riley added, not noticing the warning death glances she received from the other hosts.

In truth, Tamaki had prepared a matching outfit for Haruhi, while the twins had pulled out another provocative ensemble from their seemingly endless closet for Riley. The two dead panned a no, sending Tamaki to his emo corner, and the twins to pout and pester Riley for a good five minutes.

The customers cooed, "I think it's amazing that Riley can be so proper sometimes!" "Wow, Haruhi, you really stay true to the seasons!" "I hope it snows lightly on the night of the Host Club's Holiday party!" "The two of us dancing, with snowflakes falling all around us, aahhh…"

Riley let Haruhi take it away. "You really think so, ladies? I think it's so cute when you start dreaming like that." Flashing them a sincere smile, the girls went gaga.

"Excuse me," a smooth voice called out, a girl with short, light brown hair and brown eyes approaching Haruhi. "But I think it's time for the hosts to switch clients."

Haruhi looked at the girl. "Oh, I'm sorry, you must be my next appointment. Miss…"

"My name's Kanako. Kanako Kasugazaki." She lifted Haruhi's chin with her hand, cooing, "My, you're even cuter than I expected. From now on, you're going to be my new favorite host, Haruhi."

Riley elbowed Haruhi, smirking, "Well, would you look at that? You're next!" Tamaki popped out of nowhere, gaping.

* * *

"I can't take this," Tamaki mumbled, slurping seemingly endless commer ramen noodles in his corner of woe.

Hikaru looked over to the blond, yelling, "Boss, is it really necessary for you to mope around eating commoner's ramen?"

"Yeah, we're about to start the planning meeting for the Holiday Ball," Kaoru told him, leaning against the table next to his brother. The others seemed to be seated and assembled at the table with Kyoya at the head, typing away at his laptop.

Riley yelled, holding up her IPhone, "Yeah, and Charlie and Alex only have twenty minutes before they have to get back to their training!"

Charlie's voice came from the other end as she sighed. "Okay, I'll bite. What's gotten Tamaki upset this time?"

"Princess Kanako," the twins chorused.

Alex's voice could be heard as she lightly chuckled, asking, "You mean the one with the illness?"

"Illness?" Haruhi asked, utterly confused.

Hikaru and Kaoru popped out of nowhere, clarifying, "She's got the host-hopping disease."

Riley added with a roll of her eyes, "A.k.a the never the same boy twice disease. Kyoya told us about it after Princess Kanako requested me, and then Charlie."

Kyoya continued typing, never looking up from the screen. "Usually our customers choose a favorite host and then see them regularly. However, Princess Kanako tends to change her favorites on a regular basis."

Hunny scooted over to Haruhi and Riley, holding his precious Usachan. "That's right, because before she chose Haruhi, she was with Tamaki."

"Ah yes, what a happy couple… Too bad it _only lasted a week_," Riley mumbled sarcastically.

The group now revolved around Haruhi as she realized, "Oh, so he's upset because I took her from him…"

"SHUT UP!" Tamaki spat, angered. Haruhi suffered his wrath with a calm face, but poor Hunny was almost blown away by the force, so Riley was forced to try and keep him grounded. Tamaki continued ranting, "I couldn't care less!"

Tamaki stepped back, growling, "I'm running out of patience! Haruhi, Davidsons!" He pointed dramatically at Haruhi and Riley, who was holding the phone in one hand and trying to comfort Hunny back to his original self with the other. "It's time you all started dressing like girls!"

They could practically see Alex rolling her eyes on the other end as she muttered, "So that's what the idiot was getting at…"

"Well, would you look at the time? We have to go- _now_," Charlie avoided listening to the rest of Tamaki's speech, hanging up the phone. Riley noted that they still had ten more minutes at least.

Tamaki continued his melodramatic rant. "I don't understand how you four can be so popular with the ladies when you are yourselves ladies! No one else in this school knows the truth except for those of us here!"

Hikaru and Kaoru came up on either side of the fuming blond, Hikaru commenting, "Yeah, they opted out of taking gym classes."

"And the attendance numbers are all mixed together so no one can tell," Kaoru added. Just as he had finished talking, Tamaki quickly ran off and returned with a large chest of his personal belongings, rummaging through it.

As he pulled out a _huge_ frame out of the chest, he mumbled, "That's enough, you two. Now you listen to Daddy…" He presented the picture to the two girls, which was actually four different portraits of the girls in one frame. However, they all had long hair, and dressed incredibly girly. "Daddy wants you to go back to the way you where!"

"Don't go blowing up my photos without asking me first!" the two girls snapped at the same time, Riley adding, "And where did you get a picture of me in a dress?!"

Tamaki leaned the huge picture against the wall, sobbing. The other club members gathered around it, Hikaru mumbling, "The more I look at this picture, the more amazed I am… How could this Haruhi become that?" (He was referring to the first time they saw her.)

Haruhi explained at their looks, "The day before school started, some other kid in my neighborhood got gum in my hair." Haruhi added, "It's a real pain to get gum out of long hair, so I decided to cut it all off. I didn't care if I looked like a dude…"

Riley rolled her eyes. "Dude, you could've just froze it off," she commented. She quickly added, "I made a bet, so… that's my story…"

Tamaki complained, "GIRLS SHOULD NEVER REFER TO THEMSELVES AS "DUDE"! MAMA!" He broke down, sobbing, "Haruhi and Riley are using those dirty boy words again…"

Riley raised an eyebrow. "Funny, because in California, everyone's 'dude'…"

Kaoru turned towards Kyoya, taking his eyes off of a very saddened Tamaki. "I'm sorry, but who's 'Mama'?" he asked the boy with glasses, the others watching Haruhi ignore Tamaki, and Riley taking a few pictures with her camera for blackmail.

"Based on club position, I assume it's me," Kyoya muttered.

"Okay, if Kyoya gets to be a mom, then we get to be boys!" Riley burst out, putting her camera away in a safe place.

Haruhi looked down at Tamaki, angrily telling him, "I don't see what you're crying about. Working as a host, I can pay back more of my debt. It'll never happen if I'm just an errand boy."

"And I am _not_ giving up a year's worth of Pocky to my parents!"

"Hate to change the subject," Hikaru interrupted with a voice that told them he didn't mind changing the subject at all, "But do you have formal dancing experience? You'll need it for the party."

Haruhi froze. "Uh, no, but the party doesn't have anything to do with my quota, right? I'm not interested in going to events so if I could be excused...?" The way Tamaki came up beside her, an evil glint in his eyes, told her she wasn't getting out of it.

"Definitely not," Tamaki put his hand to his chin, as if he was already thinking of his master plan. He added, with a sickly sweetness in his voice that could only mean trouble for the two girls, "A refined gentleman _must_ know how to dance."

Hitting his signature pose, he stared a hole through the girls. "If you two want to live the lives of hosts that badly, you're going to have to show how far you're willing to go." Hitting a small series of poses, he faced the girls dead on, commanding, "I order you two to master the waltz in one week, and you will demonstrate it for us at the (insert random twirl for no reason) party." He stopped his twirl, an accusing finger landing on the girls. "Or I'll tell the entire school that you're girls!"

As Haruhi began to get nervous and see a grim future ahead, Riley pointed an equally accusing finger at Tamaki, yelling, "PWNED! I already know how to waltz!" She looked over to Haruhi, mumbling, "You're on your own, kid." Riley certainly wasn't helping.

* * *

The very next day, during hosting hours, Haruhi was nervously and anxiously attempting to practice and learn the waltz with her newest customer, Princess Kanako. Kanako repeated as they clumsily glided across the floor of the clubroom, "Quick, quick, slow… Quick, quick, slow…" over and over again. Hunny and Mori were spinning around the room in the background. (Mainly Hunny's idea.)

Tamaki sat, depressed, at a windowsill, looking even more forlorn than usual. Princess Kanako soothed, "Good work, Haruhi. Now on the slow, bring your feet together. And remember, the gentleman always leads." Haruhi chuckled nervously, too focused on making sure her feet moved in the right way. "And make sure to look at the lady you're dancing with."

"Got it." Suddenly, Haruhi made a wrong step, causing her and the princess to fall quite clumsily so that Kanako was lying, her back to the floor, with Haruhi lying on top of her, supporting her weight on both her hands. Haruhi quickly apologized, "I'm so sorry, Miss Kasugazaki!"

Without warning, the supposedly "well-behaved" princess wrapped her arms around Haruhi's neck, and forced her a little closer to her body. "It's okay, Haruhi."

Riley and the twins watched as Tamaki continued to hold the same dramatic and depressed pose, not moving a single inch. "Why so gloomy, boss?" the twins asked in unison.

Hikaru looked over at his twin and Riley, teasing, "I bet it's because he wanted to be the one Haruhi practices with."

Kaoru added, "I think you may be right, but he's way too tall to stand in as a woman."

Riley snickered, "Yeah, but he's certainly feminine enough."

Haruhi stood beside the table that Kanako had seated herself at, telling her, "Thank you so much for allowing me to practice with you, I really appreciate it."

Princess Kanako ceased to press her handkerchief against her cheek in an attempt to dab off her slight sweat she worked up. "Oh, no problem." She then proceeded to interlace her fingers, resting her elbows on the table, and resting her chin on her interlocked fingers. "I heard that you weren't seeing any customers today so that you could practice dancing." She looked up at Haruhi, her light brown eyes sparkling and her smile coy as she added, "I'm glad I got to spend this time alone with you."

Riley murmured to Hikaru and Kaoru, "You know for a princess, she's a pretty big flirt." However, now Riley was interested, especially when she thought she saw Haruhi realize something. She decided to stand by the girl, listening in on their conversation.

"Oh my, this is a new tea set, isn't it?" Kanako asked in slight but controlled awe as she raised her teacup closer to her eyes. "It's Ginori…"

Kyoya "happened" to also be standing by, and Haruhi repeated to him, sweat dropping, "Ginori?"

"Ah, you have a fine eye for tableware, mademoiselle," Kyoya complimented the Princess.

Riley shot Kyoya a baffled look. "What up with the French sudden?"

After receiving some confused looks from the princess, Kyoya, and Haruhi, Kaoru managed to correct her, "Riley meant 'What's up with the random French?'"

"Hey, you're getting pretty well at bird."

Kaoru chuckled, correcting, "You're getting pretty good at that."

"Oh… continue, please."

Kyoya ignored the previous conversation, continuing, "In fact, we just received them yesterday. We decided it was about time for the club to upgrade its tea sets."

Princess Kanako continued to admire the teacup, off in her own little world. "I see," she commented, her eyes still on the emerald and gold cup, "What a pretty color…lovely…"

Tamaki overheard the conversation, and lifted his head from its place resting against the wall, his interest suddenly piqued. Haruhi took no notice, and said with a smile, almost jokingly, "You must really be into tableware, huh?"

At this, Kanako practically slammed the teacup and plate down on the table, getting flustered and stuttering. Her words came out in a rush as she tried to cover it up. "Not-really-I-mean-of-course-I'm-not!" She turned toward Haruhi, seeming to calm down, but was still nervous, asking, "Whatever would give you that idea?"

Riley mumbled sarcastically under her breath to Kaoru who was still standing close next to her, "Well gee, that's not suspicious at all…"

Haruhi obviously thought the same thing, thinking, _She obviously knows a lot about it. Why would she lie?_ Haruhi studied the girl quickly, before a male voice interrupted her thoughts. "Hello? I'm here with the new teacups you ordered."

Princess Kanako's head snapped up, as Kyoya greeted the boy, "Ah, thank you very much." The Shadow King continued, complimenting, "Every item that you've chosen for us has been extremely popular with the ladies. I'm quite impressed."

The Host Club looked over and studied the boy. He looked to be about Kanako's age, with modest looks. His brown hair was fairly dull, and his gray eyes shined a bit. He wore a cream sweater over a familiar-looking white dress shirt and purple and black tie.

"Well that's good to hear," he replied, holding a yellow and black box.

Haruhi walked over, following behind Kaoru and Riley. "So do you sell tea sets?" she asked.

"No, I'm just a regular student," the boy corrected her politely and slightly timidly, his voice smooth. "Can't you tell by the uniform?" Haruhi accepted the box, looking at it with interest, Riley peeking over her shoulder.

Kanako let out a giggle, finally turning around in her seat. "Oh Haruhi, you're so funny." The group looked over at the girl, who was still giggling in an oh-so-fake way. "I can't blame you for not knowing. After all, he doesn't look like an heir to a first-class company."

The boy stiffened a bit, a small gasp escaping his lips. Riley mumbled low enough so only Haruhi and the twins could hear, "Oh no she didn't…"

Haruhi ignored the blond, repeating in a small voice, "First class company?"

The boy continued to gaze at Princess Kanako, his lips slightly parted, as Kyoya explained, "His family's business, the Suzushima Trading Company, deals primarily in the importing of tableware." As the male student looked at Kanako with a slightly shocked expression, the princess quickly let her gaze fall, her eyes filled with sadness, and a hint of guilt. "They currently have the top market share in the country," Kyoya concluded.

"Wow…" Haruhi continued to look at the box with interest, whose top did in fact have the Suzushima name printed in black on it.

"So, whenever something exceptional comes in, we've asked him to send it our way," Kyoya added. Haruhi lifted her eyes to look back and forth between the boy and girl. "He has a great eye for fine china," Kyoya continued, Kanako turning back around in her seat, so she wasn't facing the Suzushima boy's now forlorn face, "Don't you, Suzushima?"

The boy snapped back to reality, humbly asking, "You think? I still have a lot to learn, but thank you." Kanako's face twisted with pain and sadness, as she knew where this conversation was going.

Kyoya asked him curiously, "Aren't you leaving next month to study abroad in England?"

"Yes, I am… Well, I better go now." Kanako slowly felt her heart break once again.

Seeming to pop out of nowhere, Tamaki was now leaning against her table with one hand, asking in a silky and polite voice, "So, are you enjoying the Host Club?" Tamaki lifted his head as Haruhi came nearer, still holding the box.

"I get the feeling you and that guy are close," she commented.

Once again, Kanako became flustered, turning around in her seat to face Haruhi, stuttering and mumbling. "Don't be ridiculous! We hardly know each other! What makes you say that, Haruhi?" Haruhi watched, raising a brow and sweat-dropping as Princess Kanako scurried around her, mumbling, "Now if you'll please excuse me… Take care." And with that, she hastily made her way out of the clubroom.

"HARUHI!" Hunny tackled the girl from behind, Haruhi letting out a small yelp, but quickly balancing herself and breathing deeply to try and calm her heart from the shock as the blond boy chirped, "Guess what? They do know each other! Suzushima is Kasugazaki's fiancé!"

Tamaki crossed his arms, and asked, "Kyoya, how long have you known about this?"

Kyoya turned at the mention of his name, his glasses catching a glint. "About the two of them being engaged?" He opened up his notebook in a fluid movement, explaining, "Well, as you know I conduct general searches on all our customers. The two of them were childhood friends; it seems that their engagement was arranged by their parents. I didn't think the information would benefit us, so I disregarded it."

He looked up from his neat writing, Tamaki murmuring, "I see…"

Kyoya continued, looking at two student profiles, "Tohru Suzushima: Outstanding grades, fair social status… He's ordinary looking, but he's reliable. If I had to fault him for anything-"

The twins came up on either side of Kyoya, Hikaru cutting him off, "He doesn't have much presence."

"And he's faint-hearted," Kaoru added.

Kyoya looked up from the notebook, snapping it shut. "So in other words, he's boring."

Haruhi sweat-dropped, thinking, _I had no idea they were so merciless to other guys_. Riley sweat-dropped too, mumbling, "You're almost as bad as the popular girls in Los Angeles…"

Hunny piped up from his new spot on Mori's shoulders, "Suzushima is a good boy, right?"

"Yeah."

"All right everyone," Tamaki stepped forward so that on one side of him were Kyoya and the twins and Hunny, Mori, Haruhi, and Riley were on the other, suddenly growing serious. "We'll have to work on our strategy."

Everyone simultaneously asked the blond, "Which one?"

"Ooh! Ooh!" Riley waved her hand vigorously, jumping up and down like a student wanting to be called on. She blurted out, "Will we be using code names for this?"

Tamaki disregarded her and instead dramatically popped his head up and explained in a smooth voice, "Men, it is our responsibility as members of the elite Ouran Host Club, to make every girl happy!"

"WAIT A MINUTE!" Riley jumped right in between the two sides and in front of Tamaki, raising her index finger to the sky. She then dropped her arm, pointing her finger accusingly at Tamaki and yelling, "You just called Haruhi and I men!"

Tamaki froze as he realized his slip of the tongue, Riley looking oh-so-smug. "And that, my dear Tamaki, would be the second time I PWNED you this week."

* * *

One week later, in a dimly lit ballroom, the Host Club (minus Charlie and Alex) was lined up on a grand staircase, Tamaki at the very top. He cooed, "It is so good to see you, my little lambs." He raised his hand dramatically, continuing, "The Ouran Host Club would like to bid you-" Tamaki then bowed, a single spotlight hitting him in all his glory as he chimed, "Welcome."

Suddenly, the chandelier lights went up, with an orchestra beginning to play, and the ladies gathered at the bottom of the marble stairs clapped, all dolled up for the dance. So was the Host Club, with Tamaki in a white tux, the twins looking a bit like casino owners in their vests, Kyoya in a black suit, Mori in a dark blue tux, Hunny in a creamy tux, Haruhi in a brown suit borrowed from the twins, and Riley in a somewhat conventional (shocking, I know) emerald suit with a bright orange bowtie.

Kyoya took his cue, and raised his arms to address the girls. "As always, ladies, the Host Club members are here for your entertainment. So we invite you to dance to your heart's content. Based on your dancing skills, one lucky lady will be chosen as tonight's queen. The queen's reward will be a passionate kiss on the cheek from our king."

Tamaki seemed to be thinking, but opened his eyes, cooing, "Good luck to you…" He then outstretched his hand, adding charmingly while winking, "My darlings." With that, the girls squealed with delight and hope, one even swooning and fainting.

Haruhi looked quite amused, annoyed, and like she really didn't want to be there at the same time. The twins came up on either side of her, scolding, "Haruhi, show some enthusiasm."

"Well excuse me you guys, sorry. I'm not used to this sort of thing. I've only ever gone to the festivals held in my neighborhood park."

Kyoya stood off to the side, writing with a pencil on a clipboard, Mori standing beside him with Hunny on his shoulders. Kyoya commented, "I don't know if you can really consider that as a party or not." He stopped writing, looking up from his papers. "Well, since you're here, you might as well get something to eat. We've got quite a spread." This seemed to catch Haruhi's attention.

"A spread…" Haruhi repeated in a whisper. She looked over to the boy, sheepishly and awkwardly asking, "Do you have fancy tuna?"

Kyoya's mechanical pencil snapped, the boys all seeming to break up into separate parts as they repeated, "Fan-Cy-Tuna?"

Tamaki flipped over the bar of the top of the stairs, landing gracefully so he was on the same level as the other members of the club, Hikaru and Kaoru glomping a very agitated Haruhi while Riley eyed them strangely and Kyoya already taking out a cell phone. Tamaki pointed over to the bespectacled boy as he ordered, "Get some fancy tuna here right now!"

"Add some deluxe sushi," Kyoya ordered into the device.

Haruhi was red as a tomato, Hikaru and Kaoru cooing in her ear as they continued to nuzzle her. The commoner thought to herself, _Damn these filthy rich jerks_. (1)

"You know, Kyoya," Riley told the boy in a very matter-of-fact way as he put his cell phone away, "You really should make Charlie cater these events. After all, she would _never_ leave off something that anyone would possibly want." Kyoya paid the girl no mind, until Riley added in a very devious and sly voice, "Plus, she would do it for _free_."

"As soon as Charlie returns from your mother's grand opening, do tell her to come see me about it."

The night then proceeded as any ball would, with fan girls and customers walking around and talking to each other, some working up the courage to ask their favorite host to dance and following Kyoya's advice of "dancing to their heart's content".

The hosts all danced with their customers in the center of the ballroom, fairly close to each other. In fact, Haruhi was the only one not dancing at the time, with Riley gone without a trace. Haruhi leaned against a marble column; perfectly content to just watch the others dance. Unbeknownst to her, two eager fangirls were peering around the column, both just about to work up the nerve to ask her to dance.

"Hello Haruhi," a female voice greeted from just a few feet away, causing both the fangirls to panic and retreat to their hiding spots behind the pillar. Haruhi looked over to the source, to find Kanako all dressed up in a very flattering blue dress. The princess told her, "I've been looking everywhere for you. Do you think maybe I could have the next dance?"

Haruhi smiled, holding out her hand. "Yeah, of course you can." The two girls watched, slightly jealous and very saddened as Kanako took Haruhi's hand, both of them making their way to the dance floor.

Hunny leaned towards the others as he waltzed, informing them, "The princess is here."

"All right, men," Tamaki told them calmly, their dance partners seeming too absorbed in their beauty to notice the fact that they were all whispering something to each other about a plan, "Riley should be done with the errand. So let us commence our operation."

"Roger!" Hunny and Mori told him, both running and sweeping Haruhi away, leaving a very confused Kanako out on the dance floor alone.

* * *

Mori slummed the petite brunette over his shoulder, carrying her to the dressing rooms while Hunny bounced around, the twins and Kyoya waiting outside a stall. "There she is," Kaoru commented, Hikaru holding a bundle of clothing.

Mori let the girl down, Haruhi arguing, "You didn't have to be so forceful!"

"Never mind that," Hikaru forced the bundle into her arms, ordering her, "Go get changed." Hunny gave the girl a little push, so Haruhi stumbled quite clumsily into the dressing room.

Riley came jogging in, panting hard. She bent over, trying to catch her breath in front of the others. Kyoya looked over to the girl, asking, "So, did you make sure Tohru received the letter and knows where to be?" (2)

Riley made a thumbs-up sign with her right hand while she straightened up, telling them breathlessly, "Of course. And I must say it worked out perfectly with my ninja skills."

"Oh really, wacky? How did it _really_ go?" Kaoru teased, ruffling her long hair.

"NO TOUCHY!" Riley snapped, slapping away his hand somewhat playfully. She then regained composure, rubbing the back of her head with her hand, as she explained, "Well, at first I tried to slip the letter into his hand while he was walking to his car. You're lucky I managed to catch up with him after he finished with filling out some forms so he can go abroad." Riley added sheepishly, "But, um, he must've been a ninja too, since he noticed me and asked me what I was doing stalking him. So I gave him the letter, and said that a girl asked me to give it to him and told him to read the letter and go meet her in the Science classroom."

"Excellent," Kyoya nodded, filling Riley in that Haruhi was currently changing. Kyoya added after a minute, "A little accident towards the end of the night would be quite thrilling." He pulled back his sleeve, looking at his watch. "And remember, Haruhi, there are only 20 minutes remaining before the party reaches its climax. As you have probably already heard Riley report, Suzushima is already waiting for you in the classroom across the hall."

Haruhi came out, wearing the pink dress and heeled shoes, along with a long wig. She sat at a chair, the Hitachiin Twins doing her makeup as the others watched, Hunny chiming, "You have to ask him how he feels, okay?"

"Uh, we know this is the boss's strategy," the twins piped up, both of them expertly applying Haruhi's makeup, "But this is kind of unsettling."

Tamaki dramatically bursting in through the double doors, scolding, "Here you all are. Gentlemen, what are you doing? The guests are waiting for-" He stopped mid-sentence, as Haruhi rose from her seat, practically glowing in her beauty.

Hikaru and Kaoru came up on either side of a stunned Tamaki, asking, "So, what do you think?"

"Wow! You look so cute!" Hunny chirped as Haruhi made her way ungracefully past them, and out into the hallway, complaining, "My face feels heavy, and it's hard to walk in these shoes."

Out in the dim hallway, Hikaru and Kaoru cheered, "Good luck, Haruhi!"

Tamaki finally spoke up, cooing, "I can't believe she's so pretty."

Riley was laughing, "Man, am I glad that I don't have to do that!" She continued to giggle, the group looking over at her. As she finally realized the evil glint in the twins' eyes, her giggling became nervous and more spread out, until she finally stopped, groaning, "Aw, come on! I don't have to be a girl to tell Kanako to-"

"Don't ask questions! Change!" And with that, Hikaru, Kaoru, Mori, and Hunny were all shoving her into the dressing room forcefully, making the girl suffer the same fate.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tohru was waiting in a dim classroom, staring outside the window. The clouds had gathered, and the night had become cold, beckoning the snow to fall. He turned towards the door as it opened, revealing a disguised Haruhi.

He asked, slightly shocked as Haruhi walked towards him, "You're the one who wrote this letter? You're totally different from what I imagined." In fact, after first reading it, Tohru had even thought that Riley was just playing a prank on him.

"Letter?" Haruhi repeated as Tohru passed her the envelope he was holding. She quickly opened it to find a letter, written in hot pink with lots of hearts and doodles all around it, reading:

_I'm in love- love! From the first time since I saw you I've been head over heels in love! It's like my heart is stuck in a never-ending typhoon! All these feelings of love keep whipping around in my heart like the breaking waves! When the typhoon's rising waters come, I want to run with you to Noah's Ark! I do! I do!_

Haruhi sweat-dropped, wondering, _Who would write such a stupid letter?_ Hikaru, Kaoru, and Kyoya, that's who.

Seeming to recognize her, Tohru asked, "Excuse me, have we met somewhere before?"

Haruhi panicked. "NO! This is the first time I've ever talked to you!" she reassured him, giggling nervously, hoping he would let it go.

"I'm sorry," Haruhi relaxed, but listened with intent, "I'm flattered by your letter, but I don't feel the same way." Tohru explained, the sadness heavy in his eyes and voice, "You see, another girl already has my heart."

"Oh, well, I didn't know that you had a girlfriend," Haruhi straightened up.

"Unfortunately she's not my girlfriend. In fact I think she's completely over me." He shifted his gaze back outside the window, where an occasional, tiny snowflake could be seen. "In all honesty, I think she would be better off with someone more self-confident than me."

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the ballroom, a very agitated and dressed up Riley searched for the princess. The twins had spared nothing girly that they had brought, and she now had a long, blond wig that resembled her mother's hair; long and flowing, coming to her waist and slightly curled. Part of it also came in front of her body, framing her face that was covered with light and delicate make-up. She also wore a white, strapless dress, whose top half was sparkly, while the skirt came to her knees, and was made out of layers and layers of thin, sparkly fabric, with a slight poof. The skirt and top were separated by a black, silky ribbon, tied into a small, neat bow at her right hip. She wore a black headband with a flower on the left side, black and white crystal earrings, white satin gloves that came to her elbows with a black floral print, and black high heels.

The group had to admit that she looked quite stunning. In fact, Kaoru had insisted that she keep the whole outfit and wig, and that she wore it as frequently as possible, followed by Riley mumbling a few German words that I would rather not translate.

"Excuse me, are you Princess Kanako?" The girl looked up at Riley, nodding and smiling politely. Riley smiled back, telling her, "A boy named Haruhi told me to tell you that he is very sorry he didn't get the chance to dance with you, and wants me to take you to him."

Princess Kanako thanked her, and followed her out to the hallway, studying her. "If you don't mind me asking," she finally spoke up, "Are you in any way related to Riley Davidson? You look an awful lot like him."

Riley bit her lip, giggling nervously in much the same way Haruhi had. "Of course not! Now, we better hurry; don't want to keep Haruhi waiting…"

"Oh, yes, of course," Kanako found it slightly suspicious, but her polite manners kept her from pursuing the subject. She then asked, "Where exactly are you taking me, Miss…?"

"Faith," Riley lied, asserting, "My name's Faith." She dodged the previous question, and stopped in her tracks, Kanako following her example. "You know, I've observed you at the Host Club for awhile now, Kanako," Riley commented, staring out the window, a faraway look in her eyes. What she was about to say, had come out of her heart, and was spoken with an air of depth.

"And, Princess Kanako, I must say that you're not the kind of girl who's good at manipulating others." Riley looked over to the brunette, who was staring at her, wide-eyed with shock.

"What do you mean by that?" Kanako asked curiously and delicately.

"Face it, Kanako. I have you figured out. I know that you switch from host to host to try and gain his attention." Riley watched as the girl's eyes suddenly began to glisten with sadness as she continued, "But the truth is, you're always the happiest when you're looking at a teacup."

Kanako's mind flashed back to a childhood memory of her and Tohru pressing their faces against a glass cupboard of teacups, Tohru happily telling her, "Whoa, check these out, Kanako!"

"They're so pretty!" she cooed.

Tohru began listing off all the different types he saw, Kanako listening happily with a smile, as she looked at all the different teacups. "Someday you're gonna be my wife, Kanako." She lifted her gaze to the small boy, her smile small and sincere. "So I'll tell you about all of them, 'kay?" He gave her a big smile, tilting his head to the side.

Kanako giggled, her smile growing.

Princess Kanako let the memory fade, mumbling, "It's pointless. No matter how hard I try, he never notices me." She held her arms to her chest, staring down at the ground forlornly. She managed to add, her voice suggesting she was mere seconds away from crying, "And now he's decided to study abroad, without even telling me…"

Riley listened, her face suddenly growing almost as sad as Kanako's. Because she knew exactly what she was going through.

* * *

Back in the classroom, Tohru explained to Haruhi, "That's why I wanted to change. I want to see the world. Hopefully, become a better man. I know it's selfish, but I wonder if she'll wait for me."

"Yeah, you're right, that is pretty selfish of you." Haruhi managed to almost kill the whole mood with her comment, Tohru feeling like she had just stabbed him. Haruhi continued, "But maybe she would wait. You'll never know if you don't tell her how you feel."

* * *

Riley led Kanako forward, an awkward but understanding silence falling. Riley told her, "Here it is."

"Thank you," Kanako managed to mumble, about to open the door.

"No problem," Riley whispered to herself, "It's nice to know I can help somebody who shares my problem."

* * *

"You obviously have strong feelings for her," Haruhi told Tohru, who was recovering from her previous comment and now looking at her with a face of awe, "So why not just go and talk to her? I think that once you've decided to change, then you've already begun your transformation."

Just as Tohru raised his hand towards Haruhi, the door opened, Haruhi turning around and seeing a very stunned Princess Kanako standing there, with Riley just a few feet away.

Tohru and Kanako stared at each other for a moment, Tohru speaking breathlessly, "Kanako."

Kanako observed the scene and lowered her head to hide the tears in her eyes, mumbling, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt you two, I just-" She was cut off mid-sentence as tears slid down her cheeks. She turned away from the sight, beginning to cry and run down the hall, not sure where she was going, but just wanting to get away.

Tohru began to run after her, yelling, "Kanako!"

Haruhi stepped outside and into the hallway, Riley watching sadly nearby, Tamaki mysteriously walking out of some secret hiding spot and towards the window, to see that it was finally snowing. Haruhi commented bitterly, "It looks like we just made matters worse."

"But he did go running after her," Tamaki told her, turning to face the direction of where the two lovers had ran off.

Haruhi realized it, and then closed her eyes, smiling. Riley also had a smile on her face, mumbling, "Those two are lucky they had the Host Club to help keep them together."

Haruhi thought as she opened her eyes and looked at the two, _It's our responsibility, as members of the elite Ouran Host Club, to make every girl happy._

Then she quickly walked off with Tamaki to change back into her suit, Riley remaining there in the hallway.

After a minute, Kaoru found her, exclaiming in an exasperated way, "There you are! Hurry up, wacky! They're about to start without us, and-" He stopped, noticing the forlorn look in her eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked, more gently.

Riley looked over to the ginger, a small smile on her face. "I'm just happy to know that there's always a way to keep people who care about each other from separating."

Kaoru studied the elegant-looking girl, wondering how in the world she was the same person as Riley. And then he realized just what she was talking about. "Riley, about your sisters…"

"We'll stay together? No need to worry? Unfortunately, that's easier said than done. We used to be the Davidsons, all part of one family. But now we're three, unique people, all with different futures. Heck, Charlie and Alex are even betrothed to some mystery guys that our parents refuse to tell us who. Alex is leaving for college this year, and Charlie is considering going to a boarding school for chef trainees. Face it, Kaoru, there are just some things that can't be helped."

Kaoru watched her, a sad smile tugging at his lips. "Actually, I was going to suggest that instead of snapping at your sisters to let them know you care, maybe you should actually try a form of compassion."

Riley smiled up at him, and began to walk down the hall, scolding, "Now hurry up! I need to change. These shoes are impossible to walk in, and this wig is itchy. By the way, I hope you wont have any hard feelings about me having to destroy you and Hikaru for forcing me into this dress."

Kaoru chuckled, following after her.

* * *

Outside the school, Kanako continued to run, Tohru chasing after her. He finally managed to catch up to her, and grabbed her wrist. She looked at him, her tears glistening.

The snow began to whirl around them, and they were caught in a spotlight. The two looked towards the school building, confused, as the guests and hosts stepped out of the doors, Tamaki could be heard announcing, "Ladies and gentlemen. It is now time for us to begin the final dance in the evening's festivities." The guests mumbled as they stepped out onto the balcony, all of them trying to get a spot so they could see. The Host Club was in the center, right in front of Kanako and Tohru. Tamaki continued, "The last waltz of the night has been chosen by the Host Club for…" he presented the two with his hand, "this couple."

Riley leaned over towards Kaoru, whispering, "All this drama has given me an appetite. Can I have a bite?" She pointed to the banana in his hands, that both him and his brother were eating.

"Sure," he mumbled, pointing the banana towards her, allowing Riley to take a bite. They both couldn't help but notice that it was an indirect kiss, but they were also both too awkward about the subject to even mention it.

Tohru let go of Kanako's wrist, and turned to face her. He timidly raised his hand, then bowed slightly and offered it, palm up, asking, "Princess Kasugazaki, may I have this dance?"

Kanako watched, slightly blushing like Tohru, her lips slightly parted in shock. After a long moment of looking at each other, she smiled, accepting his hand. "Yes."

And then, with the delicate snow falling all around them, the two waltzed as the orchestra played, the Host Club watching them with happily.

Then, as both of them seemed to be dancing in their own little, romantic world, Tohru told her, "I love you, Kanako. I always have. And, I want you to be my wife."

A smile made its way to Kanako's face, and her eyes glistened with tears of joy, as she was finally happy for the first time in months. She thought to herself, _Tonight marks the end of my host hopping.

* * *

_

Up on the balcony, Tamaki heaved a contented sigh, Haruhi expertly dodging his dramatically opening hands by bending over. "Ah, may this awkward couple be forever blessed!"

"Amen! … Oh, wait, are you supposed to say 'amen' after you bless someone, or just in church…?" Riley pondered, as Hikaru and Kaoru got a hold of some microphones, their banana peels in hands.

Hikaru came up on one side of Tamaki, announcing, "And now we will announce the queen of the ball!"

"Congratulations to Princess Kanako Kasugazaki!" Kaoru added, coming up on the other side of Tamaki.

The couple stopped dancing as the crowd clapped politely. Hikaru continued, "And for her reward, a kiss on the cheek from the king!"

"You ready?" Tamaki cooed, bringing his hands into a James Bond-esque pose, Riley mumbling, "Schürzenjäger." (3)

"Haruhi Fujioka will stand in for Tamaki!"

Both Tamaki and Haruhi panicked, Tamaki looking from twin to twin. Riley found the whole thing hilarious, and burst out laughing, clutching her sides. The twins chorused, "Kyoya did say that a little accident towards the end of the night might make the evening more thrilling for everyone!"

Tohru put a reassuring hand on Kanako's shoulder, soothing, "It's just on the cheek, right? You should accept it. It'll commemorate your graduation from host hopping."

"There's no way I'm kissing her," Haruhi replied bitterly.

Kyoya told her nonchalantly, "If you do it we'll cut your debt by one-third."

"Well it is just a peck on the cheek," Haruhi reasoned, making her way down the huge stone steps and towards Kanako.

Hunny piped up, "Hey, you don't think this is Haruhi's first kiss, do you?"

"WHAT?" Tamaki's panic only grew.

Haruhi gently cupped Kanako's face, tilting it to the side while the princess blushed. Right as Haruhi leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek, Tamaki dramatically jumped out, throwing his hand out while yelling, "Wait Haruhi!"

His plan backfired as he slipped on a banana peel that that the twins had dropped, so his hand instead pushed Haruhi forward unexpectedly, causing her to make lip-to-lip contact with Kanako. Tamaki watched with dismay, and Tohru was even more surprised.

Haruhi and Kanako quickly jumped apart and clamped their hands over their mouths, creating a few feet of empty space in between them, Tamaki falling to the hard, cold ground. The fangirls squealed or cried, while the other members of the Host Club looked amused, Riley laughing even harder now. She wiped away a laughing tear, whispering so only the others could hear, "Introducing Haruhi Fujioka, secretly turning girls into lesbians ever since she joined the Host Club. And let's not forget her lovely assistant, Tamaki!"

Haruhi still had her hand clamped over her lips, but looked up at Kanako, Tamaki in the background looking as if he had just seen a puppy been run over, thinking, _I never would've thought I'd give my first kiss to a girl. But it was such an amazing night._

Kanako turned her gaze to Tohru beside her, feeling awkward and hoping he wasn't mad. Tohru tried to smile and laugh it off, but she could tell it had bugged him.

Haruhi smiled. _So I guess it's just as well._

Riley heard her cell phone ring tone come on, "_I got your picture, I'm coming with you! Dear Maria, count me in! There's a story at the bottom of this bottle and I'm the pen! Make it count, when, I'm the one who's selling you out! 'Cuz it feels like stealing hearts calling your name from the crowd! Whoa-oh!" _(4)_  
_

She quickly dug around in her pocket for her IPhone, answering the call, the twins asking, "Is that English? What's that guy singing?"

Riley shushed them with her hand, hearing Charlie's voice greet her, "Hey little sis! Alex and I are on our way back, what did we miss at the Holiday Ball?"

Riley looked over to the scene in front of her, Tamaki still trying to recover, with Haruhi smiling at Kanako. She looked over at Kyoya, who had pretty much planned the whole thing, and Hunny and Mori, who had supplied the muscle. She looked over to Hikaru and Kaoru, and that "indirect kiss" flashed in her mind, along with her conversation with Kaoru in the hall, and the fact that she still had to destroy them for making her wear a dress. She replied, smiling, "It's a long story. But once you come back, Kyoya has an offer to make you..."

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC, and the song used for Riely's ring tone belongs to All Time Low.**

**Long story indeed! _Twenty. Seven. Pages. With. Fourteen point font. Single spaced._ Man, this took a long time! *dies of exhaustion of having to switch back and forth between the episode on Youtube and the story***

**Anyways, if there's any part you're confused about, I suggest watching the episode. Sorry, sometimes it's just hard to write what you see on TV that can't really be put into words.  
**

**(1) I know Haruhi tends to use a different word for "jerks", but let's try and keep this K+ rated, 'kay?**

**(2) Like you've never wondered how Tohru knew exactly where to meet Haruhi and when, since it was never mentioned in the "love letter"?**

**(3) German for womanizer. Heh, you know, 'cuz Riley knows fluent German? I think I'm gonna go ahead and stick with whenever she wants to cuss or say something no one else understands, she'll use German, since the only other languages she knows are Spanish, English, and French, and in my opinion those are just overrated these days.**

**(4) Can you guess the song? I already gave you a hint that a guy sings it, and that it's by All Time Low. The first person to comment by the next chapter with the correct song title will have an OC of theirs make a small guest appearance in Chapter 10. Good luck, and remember to review!  
**


	9. Secret Santa

**Very quickly, before we start:**

This is Japanese.

_This is English._

**It's important that you guys know that, otherwise you might be a tad confused. ^^'' Anyways, on with the story!

* * *

**

Chapter 9

Secret Santa

Tamaki watched as the other hosts murmured among themselves. It was the last day of school before Winter Break, and that meant this would be the last Host Club meeting. He was about to begin the meeting, and he was giddy with excitement. It was time to show the club his true genius… only that Riley and Charlie beat him to the punch.

Tamaki was about to clear his throat for attention, when Riley and Charlie began talking about the holidays, Charlie bringing up, "You know, I've always wanted to play Secret Santa, but we never got the chance."

Tamaki perked up. This was perfect! He was going to look like a hero to his precious "daughter". "Actually, I-"

"Hey, that's an awesome idea!" Riley interrupted him, completely unaware that the entire club was now listening after hearing her yell, and the fact that Tamaki was a little annoyed that he got cut off.

"Yes, well I actually-"

"What's a great idea?" This time Kaoru had stopped Tamaki short, coming up beside Riley, a curious look on his and Hikaru's face, who was next to Haruhi a seat away.

"If I could have everyone's attention?"

Charlie told the ginger, "Secret Santa. You know, when you pull someone's name out of a hat, and you have to get him or her a gift? Then, everyone gets together and swaps gifts! It sounds like a lot of fun, but everyone in California thought it was stupid." (1)

"Yes, well-"

This time Haruhi actually piped in, "I've done that a few times when I was little. It's nice to see what someone else thought you might like."

"I'm glad you all like it, because I-"

"We'll need a hat, some paper, and a pencil," Riley was already off and searching, Kyoya getting out a mechanical pencil as Alex handed the boy a piece of paper.

Hikaru and Kaoru passed Kyoya a hat that they used for the Which One is Hikaru Game, and everyone watched as the boy somehow perfectly ripped the paper into exact squares, neatly writing everyone's names onto the piece of paper, and then handed them to Alex so she could neatly fold the pieces and drop them in the hat.

"Okay! Haruhi first!" Riley announced, swiping the hat out of Alex's hands and bringing it over to the brunette.

Alex scowled. "Manners," she scolded, Riley rolling her eyes at the comment.

Haruhi quickly reached into the hat and pulled out the first slip of paper that she found, unfolding it and reading the name. Hikaru was impatient, asking, "Well, who did you get?" and trying to peek.

Haruhi hid the paper quickly, Charlie laughing at the boy, "Hikaru, no one is supposed to know who got who. That's why it's called **Secret** Santa."

Hikaru scowled, mumbling to himself and his twin nearby at how unfair commoner games were.

Riley lowered the hat so Hunny could grab a scrap of paper, and then raised it above her head so Mori could as well. Hunny asked, "So even Takashi can't know who I picked?"

"Yup," Riley told him, already heading towards Alex and Charlie, "No one but you knows until we swap gifts!"

Alex quickly picked, Charlie shifting around the hat before pulling out a name. Both looked at their paper at the same time, then folded it and put it into their right pants pocket. The club looked at them with wonder. "What?" both of them asked, again at the same time.

Riley let Hikaru and Kaoru pick, making sure that they weren't going to show each other the names. Little did she know, it was actually a bit of a big deal for them. Hikaru and Kaoru always shared everything, knew everything about each other. While Hikaru mainly ignored it, Kaoru had to admit it gave him a bit of a rush to think about the tiny difference.

Riley then let Kyoya and Tamaki pick, and emptied the hat so that the last name fell into her open palm. She quickly tossed the hat to Hikaru, not caring when he let out a scowl at the sudden flying missile projected towards him. "Oh, don't be a scrooge," she complained, reading her paper.

"A what?"

"American thing, never mind."

Kyoya looked over to Charlie, asking, "So now that we know who to shop for, I suggest we set up a meeting place and time for us to exchange gifts."

"Wait," Charlie looked over to the blond, who seemed pleased with the name he pulled out, "I think Tamaki had something to say. Did you, Tamaki?"

He looked at all the faces of his family, and realized it was futile to even claim he had the idea first. He sighed. "No, let's continue."

* * *

Hikaru paced back and forth in his and Kaoru's bedroom for the fifth time that day. It was just the very first day of Winter Break, and he was already freaking out.

Hikaru stopped pacing, and tapped his foot as he thought. Should he tell Kaoru? Riley had said that would be against the rules… "Ah, screw it!" Hikaru yelled, a little louder than he had expected. This was tearing him apart, and he needed his brother's help. He stomped off to their designer studio, where no doubt his brother was making something.

Every Christmas, Hikaru had always bought a present for Kaoru, Kaoru would figure out what it was before Christmas, he would open it, act surprised, but Hikaru would know he was _acting_ shocked, and it was as simple as that. Even when they entered the Host Club, they had only given small little trinkets to the hosts last year, because Hikaru wanted to do something a little special for Haruhi.

But now, now he had to get a _real_ gift. And it was infuriating.

"Kaoru!" Hikaru slammed the door open, watching as Kaoru jumped ten feet out of his seat in a desk, where he was looking over some of their mother's designs for the coming spring.

Kaoru took a deep breath, trying to regulate his breathing. He would never admit it, but he was always in his own little world when it came to fashion, and that was the easiest time to scare the wits out of him.

He looked to his twin, amber eyes meeting amber eyes as he asked, "What?"

"What should I get for Haruhi?"

Kaoru rolled his eyes, scolding, "Oh great, now you've gone and ruined it."

"You're my twin, how are you _not_ supposed to know?"

Truthfully, Kaoru had already figured out whom Hikaru had picked. As soon as they had gotten home, he was cheerful, then turned worried, and now he was pacing. There was only one host, or hostess, he should say, that could make him do that, and that was obviously Haruhi.

That, and Hikaru had accidentally dropped the piece of paper onto their bedside table, revealing the name to Kaoru.

Hikaru pulled up a chair that was next to a manikin, sitting next to his brother. He asked, eagerly, "So who did you get?"

"Riley."

Hikaru raised his eyebrows, asking, "So what are you getting wacky?"

"I have absolutely no idea."

"… You're no help…"

Kaoru sighed, telling Hikaru, "I can't do everything for you. Just think of what Haruhi likes."

Hikaru groaned. "But she's so boring," he complained, pouting. Kaoru slightly smiled, knowing full well that Hikaru thought she was one of the most amazing people on earth.

"I'll help you narrow it down," Kaoru offered, putting the designs away into an accordion folder to protect them. He faced his brother, counting off on his fingers, "Okay, we know she loves food, so we'll start there. Maybe something to cook with? Like a blender, or something?"

"That's boring."

"Hikaru, this is a present for Haruhi, not you." Kaoru choked back a laugh at Hikaru's pouting face. Kaoru swore, sometimes he thought he was the older twin and Hikaru was still stuck in his five-year-old days.

"Okay, but I want to get her something special…" Kaoru nodded knowingly. Hikaru probably still hadn't fully realized his crush on Haruhi yet, so he would pretend to be oblivious too… for now.

But for once, Kaoru was wrong. Hikaru had became fully aware of his feelings for Haruhi when Riley had pushed the two together in not only the "Hall of Courage" at the Halloween Party, but also into an extremely tight closet. He just didn't understand how deep his feelings were.

Kaoru thought for a bit, asking, "Well, I need to find something for Riley, so how about we have our driver drop us off at the commoner's mall and we look around?"

Hikaru shrugged, already heading out of the room, heading towards the stairs to go down. Kaoru called out to him, "Hey Hikaru?"

"Yeah?"

"It's forty-five degrees outside, how about you grab a coat?"

"…Oh yeah…"

Kaoru sighed, standing up. Honestly, did he have to do everything around here?

* * *

Kyoya sat with an overly excited Tamaki on a park bench, waiting for the others. The blond idiot king had dragged him over to the commoner's park as soon as he had woken up and opened a few presents so they could be the first ones there.

"Oh~! I can't wait to see my dear family again!" Tamaki had hopped off the bench and was now pacing around, looking at the fountain and bare, snow-covered trees. It had managed to snow on Christmas Eve, a.k.a. yesterday, and the park looked serene and the perfect meeting place for a Secret Santa gift exchange between friends.

Kyoya, however, could only see it as a cold morning, and watched as his breath hung in the air, slightly shivering in his tan trench coat. Honestly, he had no idea how the idiot was somehow able to defy the natural laws and be able to wear a leather jacket and stay perfectly warm.

"Here come the others," Kyoya slightly grumbled, standing up and picking up the small gift package with him. He watched as Hunny skipped ahead, Mori faithfully behind him. Hikaru was pestering Haruhi, while Kaoru pestered Riley, and Kyoya could just make out something different about her…

The Davidsons walked up last, and Kyoya slightly widened his eyes in shock, Tamaki gaping. "What?" Riley asked, looking down at her purple wool coat with huge, shiny buttons, gray skinny jeans, and white boots with purple and blue graffiti designs on them. She almost looked conventional. Almost…

"YOU DYED YOUR HAIR?" Tamaki shrieked, obviously petrified at what the others had already seen. (2)

Riley fingered a lock of her hair, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, and it looks pretty darn good."

"It's not permanent. The dye will come out in about two weeks time," Alex informed Kyoya, obviously spotting his critical look. "Just to see what it looks like before she gets something a little more permanent."

Charlie laughed, "Yeah, the little oddball just wanted to make sure you all knew how weird she is."

Riley pouted, telling them, "Oh please, I hardly count two black zigzags near the bottom of my hair as weird."

Alex deadpanned, "You look like a raccoon."

"A very cute raccoon," Kaoru asserted, the others giving him a slightly stunned look, especially Riley. As soon as Kaoru realized he had said the thought out loud, he blushed a bit, trying to cover up, "You know, like a Lolita girl, or something… the customers will love it…"

Riley's face seemed to fall. "Yeah, the customers will like it…" the disappointment in her voice was only evident to Kaoru and her sisters. Had she actually been glad that he thought she looked cute…?

"Well then, we better get started." Kyoya saved the day as he passed his neatly wrapped box to Mori, nodding, "I hope you don't mind my selection, Mori, but I didn't know what kind of taste in books you had."

The entire group sweat-dropped. Leave it to Kyoya to get someone books for a gift… and then tell them before they even opened it.

Mori went next, silently passing his gift to Alex, with a muttered, "Merry Christmas." Alex opened it up, and found a black, business blazer with her father's emblem placed on the right-hand side, custom-made.

Alex genuinely smiled. "Thank you, Mori." Alex then gave Kyoya his gift, and it was a brand new black, leather-bound notebook with a set of nice pens. Alex almost joked, "I see you writing so much I thought you could use some more paper." Almost joked, but not quite.

Charlie then gave her gift to Hunny, carefully making sure that the huge boxes were balanced in the small boy's hands, before Mori swooped in and took the biggest box. Hunny smiled as he opened up a box to reveal a very neat and professional-looking cake with a pink Usachan in the center with a Santa hat, with "Happy Holidays" written above in red icing. "Thanks! I love it!" the blond chirped, beaming.

Hunny then passed his gift to Hikaru, which was revealed to be a box of gingerbread men, commoner's hot chocolate mix, and two identical mugs. Hikaru half-smiled, "Thanks."

Now came the moment of truth. Hikaru looked to Haruhi, a mad blush covering his face, his eyes shy and avoiding eye contact with the girl as he held out a small, black box to her with a silver bow on it, mumbling, "Merry Christmas, Haruhi."

Haruhi looked at the box and took it gingerly, opening it with slight care. She found a beautiful but simple silver heart locket, with her name engraved on the front. It wasn't very big, but she could still fit two small pictures in it. Her stomach fluttered, and she felt a light blush creeping into her cheeks. She had never felt this before… "Thank you, Hikaru. I love it." She smiled at him, Hikaru letting out a sigh of relief.

Haruhi then gave her present to Tamaki. He opened it, and glomped her when he saw that it was a bag of assorted commoner's candy. "Oh, thank you, my precious daughter!"

"Can't… breathe…"

Charlie managed to pry Tamaki off the poor brunette, rolling her eyes and explaining to Tamaki as simply as she could that he was crushing his "daughter's" lungs. Riley added that meant Haruhi could sue for child abuse.

Tamaki then held out a small package to Charlie, beaming. "An extra special gift for my special daughter!"

Charlie froze, and a light blush covered her cheeks. Riley and Alex shared a look, and let out a teasing, "Awww…"

Charlie gingerly took the gift, not even paying attention to her sisters. She opened it up, and found a pair of simple, silver small hoop earrings and a guide to commoner's pastries. Tamaki told her, smiling sincerely, "Well, I knew my little daughter wanted to learn how to make new pastries, and I thought those earrings might look nice on you."

Riley crossed her hands over her heart in a girlish manner, cooing to Alex, "_Hikaru and Tamaki went to Jared's!_"(3)

"Eh? What did you say about me and tono?" Hikaru asked, everyone baffled by the English.

Alex actually let out a small laugh, as Charlie blushed madly, snapping, "_It's a Christmas gift! I'm just a little flattered, is all! It's not like he's my fiancé…_"

"_Don't lie to yourself, Charlie,_" Alex rolled her eyes, Riley snickering.

"I hate to break up your secret conversation," Kyoya cut them off in a tone that told him he really didn't mind too much, "But I do believe we have only two people left."

Hunny gasped and beamed, asking, "Riley and Kaoru picked each other? Is that possible?"

"Yeah."

Riley looked over to Kaoru, exclaiming, "My gift first!" She thrust out her arms and shoving the themed bag under the ginger's nose.

Kaoru took it from her with a smile, and opened it up to find a sketchbook, erasers in assorted and wacky colors, and a set of good quality colored pencils in some extremely bright colors. Kaoru raised an eyebrow, teasing, "I see you added your own flair…"

"Just in case you decide to design something for me when I become famous," Riley winked, laughing.

Tamaki looked confused. "Famous…?"

Alex looked over to the others, Haruhi and Hikaru also looking slightly baffled as she reminded them, "Riley is in training to be a performer. I have to admit, she's quite a good actress, singer, and guitar player."

"You know it!"

Kaoru smiled, lifting up the large case with a bow on it. "On that note…" He handed the case to Riley, and she set it on the edge of the stone fountain, opening it up to reveal a beautiful, acoustic guitar. However, it was all white.

Riley knew Kaoru better than that, though, and lifted the guitar with a black guitar strap out to find brightly colored Sharpies scattered all throughout the bottom, tossed around from being carried. Kaoru chuckled, "I also figured you might want to put your own flair on this too."

"You guessed correctly. And first thing's first, everyone sign it!" Riley held out the Sharpies, forcing _everyone_ to sign her new guitar. And everyone did sign it, from Kyoya and Alex's tiny, neat calligraphy, to Hikaru and Kaoru's huge, distinct handwriting with doodles all around. One of them included a heart near Kaoru's name.

Riley crossed her arms as she finished examining the guitar, everyone tossing their Sharpie into the case, "Okay, who put that heart their?"

Charlie smirked, teasing, "_Oh come on, you so like him._"

"_Shut up!_" Riley snapped, blushing.

"Well, play something wacky!" Hikaru told her, handing her the guitar as he took a seat next to Riley, Haruhi on the other side of him.

Riley took her seat, Kaoru sitting down on her other side. The others either sat on the bench or stood, watching as Riley slung the guitar strap over her shoulder, and quickly and expertly tuned the guitar. She looked at the hosts, warning them, "It's in English, so you won't understand any of it."

"I'll send them a translation, now quit stalling!" Charlie told her, rolling her eyes.

Riley took a deep breath. "_This is dedicated to all our little couples in our family. This includes Charlie and Tamaki._"

"_Shut up and play!_" Charlie snapped, looking over to Tamaki, as if to make sure he didn't understand a word Riley had said.

Riley giggled as she closed her eyes, strumming the guitar. The other hosts watched, letting the melody take them away. Riley opened her mouth, and sang in a voice that was more beautiful then any of the hosts expected:

_When I was younger I saw,_

_My daddy cry,_

_And curse at the wind._

_He broke his own heart and I watched,_

_As he tried to re-assem-ble it._

_And my mama swore,_

_That she would,_

_Never let her-self, again._

_And that was the day that I promised,_

_I'd never sing of love,_

_If it does not exist._

_But darli-ing,_

_You, are, _

_the only exception._

_You, are, _

_the only exception._

_You, are, _

_the only exception._

_You, are, _

_the only exception…_

Riley opened her eyes, a dreamy look in them as she looked at her guitar. She glanced over at Hikaru and Haruhi, and smiled to herself, as Haruhi seemed to be off in her own world, her eyes closed, and rested her head on Hikaru's shoulder. Hikaru was blushing, but obviously too pleased and entranced to try to snap the girl back to reality.

Riley looked over to her sisters, biting her lip as the next part came up. She hoped they got the message.

_Maybe I know,_

_Somewhere,_

_Deep in my soul,_

_That love never lasts._

_And we've got to find other ways,_

_To make it alone,_

_Or keep a straight face._

_And I've always lived, like this,_

_Keeping it comfortable…_

_Distance…_

_And up until now I had sworn to myself that I'm content,_

_With lo-oneliness._

Riley closed her eyes once more, a film of tears covering them.

_Because none of it was ever worth the risk!_

_Well you, are, _

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception-on!_

The club listened as the acoustic took it away, still hypnotized by the lovely song. If they could just know the lyrics… Riley looked straight at her sisters as she belted,

_I've got a tight lip on reality but I, can't,_

_Let go of what's in front of me he-ere!_

_I know you're leaving in the morning when you wake up!_

_Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dre-am!_

_O-oh, o-oh!_

The guitar calmed down, Riley singing,

_You, are, _

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are, _

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_You, are,_

_The only exception._

_And I'm, on,_

_My way to believi-ing._

_Oh, and I'm, on,_

_My way to believi-ing._

Riley strummed the guitar one last time, her eyes opening slowly as she looked at each host. Haruhi was still in a dream-like state, and wasn't aware of the fact that she was in a very romantic position with her head on Hikaru's shoulder, the locket he gave her around her neck.

Charlie and Alex ran up to the girl, smothering her in an unexpected hug. The hosts watched, amazed and happy at the same time. Charlie whispered in Riley's ear with an almost tearful voice, "_We got your message._"

"_We might be separate people, Riley, but we're sisters. And sisters never split apart,_" Alex added, her voice equally saddened.

Riley cracked a small, sad smile as she told them, "_Well, if we still want to win that bet with mom and dad, technically we're brothers._"

The three of them laughed as they pulled away from the hug, the hosts smiling. It was the first time they actually looked like they were a family. Alex told her, "_Riley, I can't promise you we won't grow apart. But we will always be together_."

Kaoru ruffled Riley's hair, teasing, "Hey, that was pretty good wacky!"

"Stop it Kaoru!" Riley laughed, trying to slap his hand away.

Haruhi had now realized that her head was still on Hikaru's shoulder, and snapped up, stiffening and a light blush covering her delicate cheeks. Hikaru also blushed, and the two of them didn't look at each other at all.

"That was beautiful!" Tamaki cooed, glomping Riley.

"NO TOUCHY!" Riley pushed the boy away, now teetering on the edge of the fountain. Kaoru managed to catch her with his hand, Riley blushing and thanking him.

Haruhi stood up, looking at the others. "I think it's time we all head home." They all exchanged farewells, and the Davidsons walked back to their separate limos.

Riley sighed as she settled into her seat. Sure, her sisters _said_ that they weren't going to split. But they still couldn't even share a limo now, could they? Oh well, at least she had this year with them…

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC, blah blah blah, and the song is The Only Exception by Paramore. Listen to it, it's really beautiful.**

**Aww, how touching! A touch of foreshadowing hidden deep within this chapter, so you probably won't spot it. But if you do, all the power to ya. Anyways, on to the infamous end notes and comments!  
**

**(1) I've lived in California for a large portion of my somewhat still short life, and I can honestly say that I have never met a single person who thought Secret Santa was stupid, so don't say I'm stereotyping, don't know what I'm talking about, etc. etc.**

**(2)Fun Fact: I originally intended for Riley to have her hair dyed, so she would seem more spontaneous, wild, and a bit more of a rocker. However, that would make the siblings a lot easier to tell apart, and the beginning (when the twins mistake Charlie for Riley) would be ruined.**

**(3)... I am so sick and tired of these commercials TT_TT'' The most annoying one? With the crossword puzzle, definitely. So of course, I had to make fun of it...**

**Please read, review, and enjoy! Until next time, my dear readers!  
**


	10. Chemistry

Chapter 10

Chemistry

Kyoya watched as Tamaki chatted away with Charlie, happy that she liked her gift, and trying to catch up with her on what she did over Winter Break. Kyoya couldn't help but crack a small smile at Charlie's very subtle blush, and how she acted slightly awkward around the boy.

He returned his attention to the front of the classroom as their science teacher addressed the class. "Good afternoon, students. Today, we will be conducting a lab. Please listen as I read aloud the partnerships and wait until after I'm done to get together with your partner and seat yourselves at a station in the back of the classroom. Make sure to put on your lab coats and goggles before beginning."

The professor began to read off the list of names, apparently partnered alphabetically. Kyoya was partnered with another boy, and he observed as Tamaki and Charlie were announced partners.

The groups began to move towards the back, Tamaki excitedly yipping along, Charlie smiling at the boy. Kyoya could tell something interesting was going to happen.

Class was over soon, leaving Charlie practically falling out of her chair laughing when the concoction blew up in Tamaki's face. He whined, "What did I do wrong?"

Charlie wiped away a laughing tear, grabbing the instructions printed on paper, telling him, "Well, I did all the pouring and mixing, and everything was fine then. It was probably when you were stirring and heating that something went wrong. Did you heat it to the right temperature?"

"Of course!" Tamaki pointed to the thermometer still sitting in the glass beaker that was now empty of the purple liquid, which Tamaki had wiped off his face. "It was heated to three degrees Celsius exactly!"

Charlie face-palmed. "Tamaki," she grumbled, "This says _thirty_ degrees Celsius."

"Oh."

Charlie sighed, telling him, "Looks like you'll have to come over to my house later today to finish this lab and turn in tomorrow. How does five sound?"

Tamaki looked confused. "Five sounds like a good number…"

Charlie giggled, explaining, "I mean can you come over to my house at five?"

"Oh." A look of realization hit Tamaki, followed and replaced quickly by a look of what can only be described as what Hunny might look like if he heard he had just inherited every single cake ever made. "That means I get to go to your house again, Charlotte!"

Charlie shushed him, thankful that students were already pouring out to go home or to their extracurricular activities, and their teacher had forgotten his classroom keys in his car and went to fetch them. "Keep it down, someone might hear you." She squinted a bit, making Tamaki feel a little uncomfortable. "You have something on your cheek," she told him, pointing on her own right cheek.

Tamaki tried to wipe it off, Charlie laughing as he kept missing, Tamaki getting more and more annoyed by the minute. Finally Charlie sighed, shaking her head as she reached up with her thumb, mumbling, "Here, let _me_ get it."

Charlie leaned closer to Tamaki's face, both of their hearts thudding as Charlie gently wiped Tamaki's cheek with her thumb, her face dangerously close to his. For a minute, they stayed that way, just gazing at each other. "Charlotte…" Tamaki muttered, gently leaning in even closer, Charlie following suit.

There was no stopping it now; their hearts thudded in their ears, the other one's breath equally sweet and enticing, and they had utterly lost their grip on reality. This sweet and passionate moment was inevitable, it was-

"Ohohohoho~!" Renge rose up on her platform, squealing, "KAWAII~!"

-Utterly ruined by the otaku.

Charlie and Tamaki's eyes widened to match saucers, and they quickly leaped to opposite sides of the science classroom.

"The passion, the delicateness, the girlish nickname!" Renge was off in her own world, standing on her platform with her opera binoculars raised to magnify her eyes.

Charlie let out a small breath of relief. At least Renge was idiotic enough to believe that Charlotte was a nickname… "Oh, I have always imagined moments like this between the Hitachiin brothers, but never have I imagined that Tamaki and Charlie would share such a taboo and romantic love!"

Charlie couldn't help but raise a brow. "You imagine yaoi situations in your free time?"

"Ah, Renge," Tamaki tried to think of a cover, trying to stay cool and keep his blush down. Had he really been so close to kissing his precious daughter…? He was at a loss for words, so he quickly mumbled, "How much did you see?"

"Oh, the doujinshi that could be written! I simply _must_ tell the others!" And with that, her platform descended, Renge blathering on about simply having to get to the Host Club to spread the news ASAP.

"Oh… crap. We are _busted_." Charlie's brain had temporarily forgotten about the "doki doki" moment she had had with Tamaki, and was now imagining what would happen as soon as Kyoya heard. Heck, what would the others think?

Tamaki's mind was far off, as he kept thinking to himself, _Why did I try to kiss Charlotte?_ Both of them simply stayed in the science classroom, their brains buzzing with thoughts.

"What are you two still doing here?" Both of their heads snapped up and back to reality as they saw their teacher standing in the doorway, holding his keys. He brushed the thought away and simply told them while he made his way to his desk, "Well, just remember to turn in that lab tomorrow for full credit. Now get going, you two."

The walk to the Host Club was quiet and awkward. Neither one said anything for fear that it might bring up the previous moment. Charlie laughed nervously, trying to break the awkward mood, "I wonder what the Shadow King is going to do when he finds out."

Tamaki said nothing in reply. Now Charlie was worried. This wasn't the normal Tamaki that she had fallen in love with… She mentally slapped herself, thankful that Tamaki couldn't read minds.

She looked over to the blond, who was suddenly pensive and lost in thought, a face she had never seen before. Still, she had to do something. Usually, Tamaki would be the one telling her not to be so serious; it felt strange to have it be the other way around. "Hey, Tamaki?" The boy looked over at her, a faraway look in his violet eyes.

"Yes, Charlotte?"

She couldn't help but smile. He always called her by her real name whenever he could, only calling her Charlie around the other students. At first it had annoyed her, but his velvety smooth voice and endearing ways had led her to love it.

Now Charlie was at a loss for words. She wanted to snap him out of this mood. She just wanted things to go back to the way they were, with them as friends. And yet, now that both their feelings were out there, it seemed like she still wanted something more. Charlie knew she had to say something, but she didn't know what.

"…Um, do you… uh, want to, um… talk about it?" The words weren't foreign or new to her, she had said them so many times when Alex and Riley had fought and she was trying to resolve everything. And yet, they felt like they had taken on a whole new meaning.

Tamaki bit his lip, turning back to look down the hallway, the familiar sign of the third music room coming into sight. "No thank you," he told her curtly, seeming to take another step away from her.

Charlie's face fell. Tamaki just wasn't going to revert to his old self anytime soon. And now he was pushing her away, like Riley and Alex sometimes did. She looked to the ground, rubbing her arm as if she was trying to comfort herself. She had to blink away a tear, cursing at herself for making Tamaki this way.

As the Host King opened the door, the others were already there, getting ready. Alex was with the other seniors, trying to get Mori to talk to her. Riley and Haruhi had become the unwilling subjects of the twins' newest game. Kyoya stood off to the corner, writing away.

As soon as Tamaki and Charlie entered the room, everyone stared, the tense and awkward mood enveloping the whole room. Riley and Alex unconsciously made their way towards their sister, simultaneously mumbling, "Charlie…"

The girl gave them a small smile, laughing it off and simply telling them, "I'm fine. But I need to speak to Kyoya." With that, she quickly made her way to the Shadow King.

Tamaki simply muttered, "I need to take a walk." He quickly left the room, the others staring after him, Charlie looking hurt.

The others slowly tried to go back to what they were doing, only more hesitant and quieter, Tamaki's new mood on their minds. Charlie cleared her throat, asking Kyoya, "Has Renge stopped by yet?"

"No…" Kyoya was puzzled, but didn't show it. He asked the girl curiously, "Why do you ask?"

Charlie took a deep breath, preparing for his wrath. "Here's the thing…" And with that, the whole story spewed out, Charlie carefully leaving out her emotions and feelings.

Kyoya nodded, slightly surprised. "I feel that we should probably cancel the club and meeting today," he told the others, putting his pen away. He reached into his pocket, taking out his keys.

The others left, all sad and confused. All of them asked Charlie, "Is Tamaki all right?"

She bit her lip, each time replying, "I don't know…" She wasn't going to plan on telling them what had happened, but from the looks on Riley and Alex's faces, she would have a lot of explaining to do at home.

Charlie began making her way to her limo, walking down the hallway, a mixture of hurt, sadness, and anger bubbling inside of her. She was mad at herself, not just because she had caused such a drastic change for the club members who were almost like family now, but for not knowing how to fix things with Tamaki. And he was coming over later, too…

"Charlie! Wait up!" She turned around to find Riley, Alex, Hunny, and Mori running after her, and she raised a brow.

"Yes?"

Riley caught her breath, holding up a finger signaling to give her and Alex a minute. However, Hunny and Mori were used to the exercise, so Hunny went up to the girl, a sad smile on his face. Charlie crouched down a bit so Hunny could whisper in her ear, hugging Usachan, "If you really like Tamaki, you'll find a way to make things right."

Charlie stared at the small boy in disbelief, watching as he waved goodbye, a huge grin on his face. She stood, stunned, as the two seniors made their way down the hallway, heading home.

"Okay… Whew, remind me to work out more…" Riley had finally caught her breath, and looked at Charlie with a huge, goofy grin on her face. "Alex and I wanna ride home together! So that automatically includes you!"

Charlie was only pushed into shock a little more. Finally, after an agonizing minute, her face cracked into a smile, and she told them, "Okay, let's go."

At least things were starting to work out between her and her sisters. And Hunny was right; everything would work out in the end. It always did…

* * *

Charlie straightened out her shirt for the fifth time, waiting for the doorbell to ring. She had set up the lab in the living room, and was patiently waiting for Tamaki to come.

Minutes ticked by, until finally Charlie was convinced that he just wasn't coming. Just as she was about to do the experiment over alone, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" She was at the door in record time, opening it and finding Tamaki standing outside. "Come in." She gestured indoors, closing the door slowly behind him. She took a final deep breath before she made her way to the living room, where Tamaki was in pure business mode.

"Let's finish this quickly," he told her curtly. Charlie flinched at his blunt comment, hurt. Something was definitely wrong with Tamaki; he would never act this way before.

After only a few minutes, it was like she didn't even know him anymore. He was still polite, and at least he wasn't being too harsh. However, the only guarantee Charlie had that he hadn't been replaced by a clone was that he still called her Charlotte.

Once the experiment was done, Tamaki quickly packed up. "I'll hand this in to our professor tomorrow." With that, he was already standing up, merely telling Charlie, "Thank you for allowing me to come over, Charlotte."

"Wait, Tamaki!" The boy froze, turning back around to face the girl, who was also standing. Charlie took a deep breath, closing her eyes and blurting out, "Do you hate me?"

When she opened her eyes, Tamaki simply looked stunned. "Hate you?" he repeated, his face growing more and more shocked.

Charlie was shaking now, nodding as tears began to slide down her face, sobbing, "You push me away, and treat me coldly, and it's like I don't know you anymore! I'm sorry I ruined our friendship; just tell me how I can fix it! Please, Tamaki! I can't stand the thought that you hate me, and, and…" She trailed off, crying into her hands. She had promised herself she wouldn't cry, not this soon, but she couldn't help it.

Charlie sniffled, and was stunned as Tamaki dropped his bag and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. "I could never hate you, Charlotte," he soothed, rubbing her back. She snuggled deeper into the hug, enjoying his warmth. It was safe and secure in his arms, and his voice calmed her. "I'm just… in a situation, right now."

"Situation?" She looked up at his violet eyes, asking, "What do you mean? Because if you want to forget what happened before and just be friends, then-"

"No, Charlotte," he cut her off, a sad smile on his face. He told her, "I had just found out this morning that my father and grandmother had picked a fiancée for me. And then the incident in science class happened…"

She just stood in his arms, taking it all in. She told him, "Tamaki, I'm engaged, too. But, I mean, we're still young, and…"

Tamaki shook his head, telling her, "I'm sorry, Charlotte, but I just can't think of you that way… I'm sorry."

She mustered up a fake smile, laughing, "I guess that means the whole yaoi moment was a one time thing, then."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Charlotte." Without warning, and before even Tamaki himself could realize what he was doing, Tamaki had gently kissed her hair, breathing in her scent. She always smelled like a bakery, and he loved that about her…

Charlie silently followed a few feet behind him as he made his way to the door, a slight blush on his face, realizing that he had just kissed his "daughter". She smiled sadly after him, waving as his limo pulled out of the driveway.

She leaned against the door for support, her smile disappearing without a trace. She just couldn't believe that after all these months, all this time, she had loved him. And now what? Tamaki didn't even want to imagine a relationship with her. It was probably because he was engaged.

Charlie was filled with a new anger. Why did parents have to decide whom they married? She was engaged, and Tamaki had a fiancée, and- Her mind stopped as a thought occurred to her. She ran back to the living room, picking up the home phone and punching the familiar number, growing impatient as the phone kept ringing and ringing. It was a long shot, but she had to know. She just didn't know how she would react either way...

"Hello, Dad… Yes, dinner is ready… I need to ask you something… Whom am I engaged to?"

* * *

**Disclaimer: I only own my ocs.**

**DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUN! Cliffhanger!**

**So, talk about drama! Don't worry, I'll try to balance it out by lightening the next chapter up a little. In conclusion, the Davidson sisters are starting to get along, Tamaki and Charlie realize they love each other, both are already engaged, gosh this sounds more and more like Romeo and Juliet... :P Anyways, I'm just gonna shut up and leave you hanging until later! XD**

**_Every time you push this button,_**

**_Riley is rewarded with a Charlie-made sugar cookie._**

**l**

**\/  
**


	11. Encore

Chapter 11

Encore

Tamaki had begun to go back to his old self the very next day, but Charlie had called in sick. His face slightly fell, but he didn't make a big deal about it as he normally would. Especially since he knew there was no way she could become so ill when she was perfectly healthy, but heartbroken, last night.

His heart ached a little. He was the cause of that, wasn't he? Still, he just couldn't imagine loving her as anything more than a daughter, and now with the new news of a fiancée, it just felt even more wrong. It only made it worse that his grandmother and father refused to tell him who it was.

The entire Host Club was a little more forlorn than usual, deciding to cancel the club today as well, but still hold a meeting. Kaoru looked around the clubroom, finally asking Riley, "What happened to Charlie?"

She looked up at him, simply replying, "She's ill."

Alex and her shared a sad glance, Alex whispering into her ear so no one else could hear quickly, "I honestly thought she would take the news better than that." Riley nodded, her face somber.

Tamaki decided that he needed to be strong for his "family", so he put on a fake smile and mustered all the fake happiness he could. "So, it's been a while since we held any events, hasn't it?"

Haruhi raised a brow. "But we just hosted the Winter Ball a couple of weeks ago." (1)

Tamaki gave her a smile, explaining, "Ah, but we need something to ring in the New Year with a bang!"

Kyoya nodded, already beginning to write in his notebook. "Any ideas?" He looked around, nobody coming up with anything useful. His sweeping gaze stopped sharply on Riley, who was sitting with her neon orange headphones on, bobbing her head to a song. He raised an eyebrow. "Riley?"

The entire group turned to her, but her eyes were closed and she couldn't hear. Instead, she kept bobbing her head and quietly sang in English, "_So take my life! I'll hand it to you. And you can try on my clothes! But you can't fill these shoes._"

Seizing the opportunity to scare the not easily frightened Riley, Kaoru lifted her right headphone just a tad, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Before anyone could argue (not that they would, really) he yelled at the top of his lungs while the girl was still in her own little world, "HEY RILEY!"

"HOLY FLYING LLAMA!" Riley's ITouch flew out of her hands as she flailed them around, her chair tipping and letting her fall to the ground with a large crash. "Okay, ow…" Riley stood up, brushing herself off. She gave Kaoru a glare, snapping, "Don't scare me like that, Kaoru!"

He simply laughed, Hikaru giving him a high-five and laughing along with him. Riley shoved her huge headphones and ITouch back into her bag, Kyoya clearing his throat as he explained, "Now that I have your attention, Riley; do you have any ideas for an event we could hold?"

Riley shrugged, looking over to Tamaki and asking, "Aren't you, like, a piano prodigy?"

Tamaki looked taken aback, but answered with a flourish, "Well of course!"

"Yeah, Charlie told Alex and me." This caused Tamaki to silence, and sent him to his emo corner.

"Actually," Alex was already off and thinking, ignoring the blond and telling the others, "Riley might be on to something. How about a concert?" Alex gave Riley a look much like the Shadow King might have if he was planning something, and added, "And our father _did_ mention how Riley needed to practice singing in front of large crowds…"

Kyoya was all over it. "Were there any songs you had in mind?"

"I have the list right here." Riley groaned, knowing full well the types of songs that were "popular with the masses" these days.

She quickly found a loophole. "But everyone will know I'm a girl!"

"These are guy songs," Alex told her coolly, allowing the others who were curious to look at the list. "And from what I've learned with Dad, Japanese boy pop stars tend to sing higher than those in America. You could easily pass it off if you sang in your lower voice."

"But they're _pop_ songs," Riley whined, sounding like she was five. "And plus, they're in English!"

"And what's wrong with that?" Tamaki asked her dramatically. Now that his mind was off of Charlie, he could start to revert to his old self. "I think it would be splendid if Riley performed before me!"

The others nodded, save Haruhi, who didn't really care, and Riley crossed her arms. "No. If I'm going to perform, I'm not going to be some 'warm-up act'. And I want a full band! And _I_ get to pick the songs!"

"Don't turn into a diva on us, wacky," the twins teased, ruffling her hair much to her dislike.

Kyoya simple ordered, "Tamaki and Riley will switch off performing 6 songs. Hikaru, Kaoru, we need you to design something for both of them and the band members. Mori, find a band with boys our age who don't attend Ouran. Alex, I'll need you to work with the songs to supply the music that we don't have, and provide me with a translation of each. Hunny, find the sheet music for the band members. Also, we'll need Charlie to cater the concert; preferably finger foods, appetizers, snacks, and so on. The concert will be next Friday."

Riley and Haruhi's mouths practically hit the floor. "Friday?" they repeated, the others already getting to work.

"Is there a problem?" Kyoya asked both of them, his glasses catching a glint.

Both of the girls gulped. "Nope."

* * *

Charlie had decided that she wasn't going to let the shock of the news keep her from school and the Host Club for more than a day, and tucked away her sadness and surprise, deciding not to tell Tamaki what she had learned.

Upon her arrival, Tamaki smiled and greeted her normally, so she was only further convinced not to ruin the mood by shocking him back to his serious self.

She also learned about the concert, and her mouth also hit the floor when she realized she had a little more than a week to prepare food for, according to the RSVPs they had received from the posters Kyoya had put up, over 200 people. She soon disregarded it, though, and dragged Haruhi with her to the school's empty Cooking Club room to help her. Luckily, the Host Club was canceled, giving her more time to prepare. It would also spare her from being around Tamaki for so long, and keep her thoughts elsewhere.

As Haruhi soon learned, Charlie was in a total cooking zen and business mode as soon as she had picked out the foods and recipes, simply ordering her what to do. She decided not to disturb her, and enjoyed the rare peacefulness. Haruhi had a small smile on her face as she followed Charlie's orders, glad to have her back.

* * *

The week was hectic, but there was no doubt that the Host Club was now well rehearsed and ready. The ballroom was empty, except for a few tables and chairs near the back, a stage with lights and assorted instruments and speakers on it, and TV monitors that Kyoya had set up throughout the room on the walls, which would serve as translators and a view of the performance on stage thanks to hidden cameras somewhere.

Kyoya was greeting guests and taking their (paid for) tickets, along with helping Alex in a hidden sound and special effects room once the concert started. Hunny would be the MC, announcing each song, while Charlie and Haruhi would carry around the trays of food for the girls and (surprisingly) boys who had come. The twins and Mori would work security and other odd jobs needed, including making sure the band hired didn't spill Riley's secret that they had learned.

"Hurry up, Riley!" Kaoru yelled down the hall of dressing rooms, the other performers waiting outside anxiously. "We're about to start!"

"Okay, okay! Sheesh, it's not my fault it takes a long time to wrap medical tape around my chest...""

Kaoru blushed, unsure why he wasn't just teasing her or something, waiting for her to finally come out. He grinned as the curtain was moved, revealing Riley. She stepped out, showing off her outfit. She twisted around, trying to make sure everything looked fine. She wore a blue collared shirt with white pinstripes, the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, and a velvet red tie under a black vest, with red skinny jeans and a white belt, black high top Converse, and one black and one white fingerless glove on either hand, navy blue and black headphones with a large microphone jutting out, like gamers might wear, on her head. "Does it look all right?" she asked him, still trying to make sure.

"I designed it, so of course I'm going to say yes."  
"You're right, I should ask someone else whose opinion I value… DAIKI!"

The lead guitarist stepped into the hall of dressing rooms, asking, "Yeah?" He was a good-looking teenage guy. Grant it he wasn't as handsome as one of the hosts, but his tall, lean figure, long, black skater boy hair, and icy blue eyes was definitely enough to get a girl's heart thumping and a boyfriend jealous.

Riley decided to mess with him, and jumped out with her legs apart, her right hand behind her head and her left hand on her waist in a "model gone wrong" way, and asked, raising her eyebrows, "Do I look hot?"

A faint blush grew on his cheeks, as he bit his lip, knowing full well that Riley was a girl. She laughed at his expression, Kaoru trying to join in, but finding it hard not to grind his teeth. The ginger didn't understand why he was jealous; Hikaru was supposed to be the jealous twin, and besides, this was Riley... "I'm just messing with ya," she giggled, clapping her hands together, "Let's get this show on the road!"

Tamaki added, "I couldn't agree more!" He looked quite dashing in his cream-colored tuxedo, complete with tails, a red bowtie and cummerbund. Charlie would certainly love it.

They could hear Hunny's voice from backstage, booming over the microphone, "Hello everybody!" They listened as he announced Tamaki would be performing an original piano composition. The concert had officially started, promptly on time at 10 pm.

Riley shoved him forward, yelling, "Go get 'em, armadillo!"

"_Tiger_."

"Oh, riiight. Go get 'em, ostrich!"

The three other band members and the twins face-palmed. Hikaru mumbled, "I see why Alex didn't want Riley to sing in Japanese…"

Tamaki started off the show with a beautiful piece of music, Riley jumping up and down all the while. Kaoru raised an eyebrow, Hikaru already out in the crowd. "What are you doing?"

Riley explained, "Trying to get some of my energy out. I tend to scare crowds after I drink five Red Bulls."

Daiki raised an eyebrow. "You had five Red Bulls?"

"Don't be silly," Riley rolled her eyes, stopping as Tamaki made his way off stage. As soon as the other band members were out of earshot, so only Kaoru could hear, she turned to him and winked. "I had six."

Kaoru laughed as the girl ran off to the side of the stage, yelling something about starting off with a bang. Kaoru and his twin had planned for that, though.

He quickly made his way into the crowd, the group clearing when they saw it was a host. It was quite a turnout; most of the ballroom was filled with cheering students.

Kaoru looked to the side of the stage to find Riley on the steps, the band about to begin. He grinned as Hikaru came up beside him, holding a banana peel.

Kaoru quickly took it, and peered around to make sure no one saw. Right before he dropped the peel onto the stage though, doubt and guilt started to fill his head. What if Riley got seriously hurt? He didn't want her to be mad at him. Hikaru quickly nudged him, gesturing to the band playing the first song, and Kaoru, out of instinct, threw the banana peel on the stage, watching as Riley did a pass.

She had practiced her tumbling, and she was amazing. A round off into a back handspring would guarantee that the crowd would love her. However, as Riley landed her back handspring, the crowd going ballistic, she stepped right on the peel. Instead of tripping/falling, as the Hitachiins had planned, her feet flew out from under her, but with her momentum, Riley was instead sent into doing a back flip, the crowd absolutely loving her.

If Riley was shocked, she hid it well, and immediately began singing her first choice song: Hello, Brooklyn. She knew how to interact with the crowd, girls going gaga, thinking she was a boy, and also played off with the band as if she were best friends with them. Her voice actually did resemble a male's, at least enough to fool the crowd as she sang perfectly, "This city! So pretty, and the moonlit skies will be hanging like a cigarette!"

Kaoru simply stared, his face stone. Perhaps it was just his mind, but Riley seemed to keep going back to Daiki, having fun. He was determined not to show it, though. This was just wacky, a toy, and this was just a performance.

When the song finished, the crowd went nuts, Hunny making his way back onto the stage, the band exiting. "Wasn't that super good?" he asked in that cute voice of his. "Okay, next up, Tamaki!"

Kaoru droned out the rest, watching as Riley exited the stage, Daiki next to her. The two were talking, laughing at something. Kaoru looked away, feeling a small pain in his heart. When he looked back, Riley was almost off the stage, scanning the crowd for someone. When she spotted Kaoru and his twin, she beamed, mouthing, "Come backstage."

"Let's go meet up with wacky," Hikaru suggested, looking towards his twin. He couldn't quite figure out what was up with Kaoru, but he knew that Riley would cheer him up by doing something weird.

Kaoru looked down, muttering, "Maybe in a little bit."

Hikaru's face fell with his brother's, now growing worried. He knew for sure something was wrong with Kaoru, and he didn't even want to see Riley. Something was going on, but he could tell Kaoru wasn't going to tell him anything. "Okay, then," he replied, looking back to the stage, "We'll visit later."

When Riley came back on stage, she was singing Just the Girl. "She's cold and she's cruel, but she knows what she's doing." All the while, she would sneak a peek towards Kaoru, wondering why he didn't come backstage with Hikaru. She had to ignore it though, and perform.

Kaoru watched as Riley repeatedly performed by Daiki. That was all he could see.

Once again they left the stage, and Riley signaled for them to come backstage again, a slightly worried look on her face. Kaoru avoided eye contact, Hikaru frowning. "Are you sure you don't want to see Riley?"

"I'm fine." He looked over to his twin, faking a smile, "But you can go without me."

Hikaru's frown only deepened. He took hold of his twin's hand, telling him, "I'm not going without you. What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Hikaru." He faked a small laugh at Hikaru's serious expression, lying, "I'm fine. Just a little tired."

The rest of the concert passed in much the same fashion. Riley would perform, Kaoru would watch, saddened as she sang next to Daiki every so often, Riley would walk off, talking to him about something, then ask the twins if they wanted to come backstage, each time looking more and more worried and desperate.

* * *

Daiki looked at Riley as she finally walked off the stage, praying the twins would appear. He didn't know them that well, but he didn't understand how someone could turn down an offer like that from someone as amazing as Riley. "You okay?" he asked.

"It's Kaoru," she told him, watching the ground. "Normally he would visit me, but now…"

Daiki sighed. All she talked about with him was Kaoru. He only managed to kind of flirt with her once at the very beginning of the show, if you count telling a joke as flirting. It was pretty plain to see that she really liked this Kaoru guy.

"Well, I think he's being an idiot," he told her, trying to cheer her up, "I mean, what guy wouldn't want to see a girl like you every chance he got?"

She didn't say anything and just stared at the ground. "I'm just really worried about him," she muttered, obviously sad. Daiki didn't say another word, just walked beside her.

* * *

Before long, it was the end of the concert, and the students were leaving, the hosts and band staying to clean up. Charlie took a deep breath as she spotted Tamaki a few yards away, taking down a sign. It was now or never.

"Hey, Tamaki," she called over to him, her heart fluttering as his violet eyes twinkled. "Why don't we go take those posters down in the hallway?"

"Great idea!" He followed her out to the hall, where it was deserted.

For a minute, Charlie let the silence set in, taking down a poster, not looking over to Tamaki. Finally, she took a deep breath, and began, "Tamaki, I need to tell you something." He deserved to know. He deserved to know more than anyone else. So why was she so nervous?

He stopped his work, turning to face her. "What is it, Charlotte?"

Now all the nerves really hit her. She was nervous as to how he would react. Would he freak out, push her away again? She bit her lip, starting slowly, "Well, I found out from my dad recently, about whom I'm married to."

Tamaki was frozen, watching her. The way she fidgeted, avoided his eyes, he knew he wasn't going to like the answer. "Go on," he told her, trying to decipher her face.

Charlie closed her eyes, taking yet another deep breath, and when she opened them, she found tears. But they were tears of joy. "It's you." Barely a whisper, and yet to both of them it was a shout.

Tamaki remained indifferent for about half of a second, and then pulled her into a hug, smiling and squeezing her close to him, not wanting to let go.

Charlie hugged back, enjoying the security she felt in his arms, mumbling, "It could only be you."

* * *

"Okay, what's going on?" Kaoru looked up from the table he was wiping down to see Riley standing in front of him, her hands on her hips.

He looked back to the table, mumbling, "I'm cleaning a table."

"Not that," Riley sighed, exasperated. Kaoru looked up to see her face again, and found that she had a look of genuine sadness and worry. "Why are you avoiding me? Did I do something wrong?"

"I'm not avoiding you," he mumbled weakly, avoiding her green eyes. He set the cloth on the table, straightening up, looking towards the ground. "I'm just tired."

He could feel her stare. "Why are you lying?"

"I'm not."

She stepped closer to him, her eyes scanning his face. "Yes, you are. Tell me what I did wrong."

"You didn't do anything wrong, wacky."

"Then what's wrong?"

He looked her in the eyes, acting exasperated, explaining, "I'm tired, period."

"Too tired to visit me backstage?" she questioned, the hurt evident in her voice and eyes. "Too tired to talk to me? Too tired to see my face?"

Kaoru gulped, looking at her. He couldn't have her mad at him. This would have to be it. The moment of truth. He started slowly, "Look, Riley, I-"

"Hey Riley! We found a cool electric guitar! Want to try it out?" Kaoru and Riley's heads turned to the source to find Daiki near the stage, waving his hands. While they couldn't tell, he was trying to get Riley away from Kaoru. It was obvious to him that this guy was only breaking her heart.

Kaoru felt another pang in his chest. Before Riley could reject the offer, Kaoru yelled, "Yeah! She'll be right over!"

"Kaoru, what are you doing?" she hissed, looking at him.

He explained, "Don't you want to spend time with Daiki?"

She flinched, hurt that he didn't want to talk to her. "Actually," she told him, her eyes tearing up and her voice getting angry, "I wanted to spend time with you, baka! But since you're so set on not looking at me for another second, maybe I'll just grant your wish!"

"Riley, I didn't mean-" But it was too late. She was already out the door to the courtyard and running, tears streaming down her face. Kaoru watched her leave. This was too much, he had to-

"Riley!" Kaoru was frozen to the spot, watching as Daiki took after her. As the boy passed the ginger, he growled, "Stop hurting her." Within a flash, Daiki was outside, running after her.

Kaoru stared, absorbing his words. Maybe Daiki was right. Maybe it would be best if Kaoru just left her alone. He slumped into a chair, holding his head in his hands. If it weren't for him, Riley would've been happy.

"Kaoru…" He looked up to see his twin standing in front of him.

"What?"

No more words were exchanged as Hikaru gave his twin a hug, then sat down beside him. He had seen the whole thing. And now, he had to take charge as the older twin, and help Kaoru fix this mess. Luckily for him, he knew that Riley didn't have any plans this weekend…

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own OHSHC, and the songs are Hello, Brooklyn by All Time Low, and Just the Girl by Click Five.**

**Another cliffhanger! I just love to torture you guys, huh XD So, Charlie and Tamaki are engaged to each other, and now there is some drama going on between Kaoru and Riley. But Hikaru has a plan :D**

**Until next time, read and enjoy!  
**


	12. This is Not a Date

Chapter 12

This is Not a Date

It was Saturday morning, after the concert, and the air was suddenly filled with romance and friendship for all...except Riley Davidson, who sat miserably on her bed, listening to music.

~Flashback~

_Riley was eating cereal in the kitchen, watching as her sisters bustled around, mumbling something about plans for the entire day. "Uh, hello?" She was still moody from what happened between her and Kaoru, and being out of the loop didn't help. "Care to fill me in?"_

_ "Mori and Hunny have asked me to come with them to a few cake buffets they found," Alex explained nonchalantly._

_ Riley's eyes widened. "You, Alexandria Noelle Davidson, are going to a...cake buffet?"_

_ She shrugged, explaining, "It was really Hunny's idea. I'm more set on trying to get Mori to talk."_

_ "So, like a date?"_

_ "It's not a date."_

_ Riley counted off with her fingers, "You're going someplace alone with two guys, you're set on talking to one of them, and you'll be gone the entire day." She sarcastically added, "Yeah, that's totally not the definition of a date."_

_ Alex sighed, mumbling, "I don't have time for this." With that, she made her way back upstairs to get ready, and would leave wearing a loose lavender blouse and tight jeans, earning another eye roll from Riley and another accusation that it was, in fact, a date._

_ Riley took another bite of her cereal, Charlie pacing the kitchen. "And what are you so nervous about?"_

_ "I have a date with Tamaki," she explained, still pacing, "And he didn't tell me where we were going. He just said to wear something casual, and that it would be a surprise."_

_ Riley rolled her eyes. "Then stop pacing and start changing! I can't eat with the fear of you knocking over my Fruit Loops!"_

_ Charlie made a disgusted face at the bowl, muttering, "You know that's pretty much just sugar and food dye."_

_ Riley pointed her spoon at Charlie and made a jabbing motion for emphasis. "And that, my dear sister, is the genius behind it!" She returned to her breakfast, Charlie finally making her way upstairs._

_ Once she was done with her "sugar and food dye", Riley went back to her room and started brushing her teeth, realizing that she didn't have any plans, and was in no mood to be cooped up in the empty house all day long._

_ She tried texting Haruhi, while still brushing her teeth, asking what the commoner was doing, and if she could come over to annoy her. Riley's eyes widened and she almost choked on her toothbrush when she read that Hikaru was taking her to a movie. Riley knew the two were in love, but she didn't think they would already be on a date. Although the way Hikaru probably worded it and how Haruhi thought of it, they probably didn't say it was a date._

_ Riley was running out of options. So she made an insane move and texted Kyoya, in an attempt to bug him. He responded that Tamaki had set him up on a blind date and he was being forced to go against his will. Riley sweat-dropped. Even _Kyoya_ had a date._

_ Riley sighed, throwing on a purple T-shirt and gray skinny jeans, and making her way to Charlie's room. As Riley predicted, Charlie was debating with herself over what to wear. Riley seated herself on the bed, watching as her sister finally picked out an off-the-shoulder sweater and skinny jeans. "Don't have any plans?" she guessed, spotting Riley._

_ "Nothing. It's like National Let's-All-Randomly-Hook-Up-And-Leave-Riley-All-Alone Day!"_

_ "I thought you had a new guy friend." At Riley's confused look, Charlie elaborated, "You know, Daiki…?"_

_ "Oh, him? I hardly count him as a friend," she told her, sighing. "All he did was try to comfort me by bad-mouthing Kaoru and making it seem like he was a jerk wad."_

_ Charlie raised an eyebrow, smirking, "Oh, well I would figure that you would think the same if you were actually mad at him…"_

_ Riley was frozen and caught off guard. "Well, uh… h-he's still my friend, and…"_

_ "Never mind. If you don't have any plans, then why not go to the carnival in town? It's a nice day out, fairly warm for still being winter and all that."_

_ Riley sighed. "Fine, sure, whatever." She made her way back to her room, and decided to listen to music for a while._

~Flashback End~

Riley sighed again, putting her I-Touch away. She couldn't stay alone in this house any longer, all moody and wondering what Charlie meant when she suggested she wasn't really mad at Kaoru.

She decided to throw on an electric blue jacket over her shirt, pulled on her purple Converse, grabbed her phone, and headed out the door, the carnival within walking distance.

Little did she know, Charlie had suggested the carnival on purpose. Because pulling up in a limo to the commoner's carnival was Kaoru, who only came because he was bored, and his brother suggested it.

Both of them made their way to a roller coaster, standing in separate lines for single riders to be partnered up. And as fate would have it, (or as Hikaru and Haruhi had planned, dragging people out of line) the next thing they knew, Kaoru and Riley were both being pushed into the front row of the roller coaster.

"What are you doing here?" they accused in unison.

"Well, apparently everybody had plans, so I came to the carnival," Riley told him.

Kaoru nodded, "Same."

They both stared at each other, before Riley looked away, crossing her arms and pouting. "I'm still mad at you."

Kaoru bit his lip. "I'm sorry, Riley."

"What was that? I couldn't hear you over my _anger_!"

"Riley, I said I-"

"I'm not listening! I'm not listening!"

"I said I was sorr-"

"LALALALALA! I can't hear you! LALALA-"

"Would you stop acting five all the time and just listen!"

Riley flinched, turning her head to see Kaoru annoyed. His face fell at her hurt expression, and he mumbled, "Sorry, it's just… I really am trying to apologize."

Riley looked away, weakly mumbling, "Do I really act like I'm five?"

"Kind of."

She made an angry face at Kaoru, who laughed. He ruffled her hair, telling her, "But that's what makes you so interesting, Riley."

"Yeah, well-"

"Please keep all hands and feet in the ride at all times and secure all belongings. Thank you, and enjoy the ride!"

Both of them grew silent as the roller coaster climbed upwards, and then plunged down, both of them yelling in sheer joy.

* * *

On solid ground, Hikaru and Haruhi watched as the roller coaster took off, Riley and Kaoru on board. Hikaru turned to the commoner, telling her, "Thanks for helping me, Haruhi."

"No problem. I just don't want to see those two split up," she told him, her eyes never leaving the ride.

Hikaru watched her for a minute, a smile on his face. She was so beautiful, and she had always helped him when he needed it…

"What?" Haruhi asked, feeling his stare.

"N-nothing," Hikaru mumbled, flustered. "H-hey Haruhi, do you want to… maybe, share a cotton candy?"

She looked up at him, smiling. "That sounds great."

Hikaru added in his thoughts as the two began to walk towards the stand, _And no tono in sight to stop me.

* * *

_

Riley and Kaoru were chatting as they walked through the carnival, all problems put aside, the conversation revolving around the ride. However, soon enough, silence fell between the two. "You know, I don't mean to act so immature all the time," Riley mumbled, breaking the silence.

"Huh?"

"You know, what you said earlier? How I act like I'm five?"

Kaoru slid his hands into his pockets, asking, "What about it?"

"I don't really mean to do it." Riley had no clue as to why she was opening up to Kaoru Hitachiin of all people. She hadn't told anybody this, but the thought that it would be her and Kaoru's little secret thrilled her.

The boy raised a brow. "So why do you do it?"

"I guess it's just kind of who I am," Riley explained, looking straight ahead. "But then again, I do it because I don't want to grow up. I mean, growing up means not seeing Charlie and Alex everyday, taking over a business, paying the bills... I just want to stay young, you know?"

At a loss for words, seeing as how he was once again stunned at how deep Riley was being, he simply nodded his head. She continued, "Plus, when I'm immature, I start arguements with Alex. She's too stubborn to back down, and Charlie wants to step in to make peace, so it brings us together."

"I see," Kaoru nodded, adding, "But you know, you are going to have to grow up some time. Everything's going to change at some point."

"No, not everything," Riley argued.

"Like what?"

"Well, things like true friendship, true love..."

"... A family bond?" Kaoru asked, looking down at the girl. "Seriously Riley, if you try hard enough, you and your sisters don't have to grow apart."

She smiled up at him. "Yeah, I guess you're right... Oh, and one more thing."

"Yeah?"

"…Where are we?"

Both of them froze, sweat-dropping. Kaoru argued, "I was following you."

"No, you were the one who was doing all the leading."

"Well it doesn't matter now. We're lost, wacky."

Riley looked around, mumbling, "Not my fault…"

"We might as well ride something," he reasoned, trying to peer above people's heads to find some sort of ride.

"Like what? All I see is the Tunnel of Love, and I would just about die if I was seen on that thing with you."

Kaoru snapped, "Are you implying that I'm not dateable?"

Riley thought for a minute, before replying, "Pretty much."

He rolled his eyes, muttering, "You're the weird one with two black zigzags in her hair."

"Hey, don't get me started on _your_ hair. Seriously, how much gel do you use everyday?"

"Well, speaking of hair…" Kaoru turned to look at the girl, asking, "Are those zigzags permanent now?"

"The dye is supposed to last about six months. Why?"

"Well, no one's going to date you if they know you can't look conventional."

"Oh, _I_ don't look conventional?" Riley put her hands on her hips, arguing, "That's coming from the boy with hair that defies gravity and does an incest act with his twin."

"It's only for the club," he muttered, losing his argument. "Anyway, we better find _something_ to ride, it's getting dark."

"So? Don't these things stay open at night?"

"Yeah, but…" Kaoru lowered his voice to a whisper, sheepishly explaining to her, "That's when everybody who dates comes."

Riley's eyes widened in understanding as she nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I don't want to be seen with Mr. Undateable."

"…Drop it."

* * *

Hikaru and Haruhi trailed behind the two, watching and trying to listen, only hearing that they weren't sure what to ride. Haruhi whispered, "What do we do now?"

"I…have absolutely no idea."

"You didn't think this through, did you?" Haruhi deadpanned, obviously annoyed.

Hikaru hissed back, "It was last minute, okay? Um…I got it!"

"What?"

Hikaru explained, "I have a feeling we should force them in the Tunnel of Love."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. "A feeling…?"

"Well we don't have any other ideas!"

"Excuse me." Both of their heads snapped up, seeing a gruff man in an apron and nametag leaning on his stand, asking, "Are you gonna just hide there and whisper or buy something?"

"Sorry," Haruhi mumbled, dragging Hikaru out of there. Once they were both at least ten feet away from the stand, Haruhi asked, "So how exactly are we supposed to get them to ride it?"

"Um…"

Haruhi rolled her eyes, muttering, "You really need to start thinking ahead."

* * *

Riley and Kaoru continued to wander around the carnival, trying to find something to do. "Corn dogs on sale for one dollar!"

Kaoru paused, muttering, "That sounds a lot like- AH!" The stampede had begun, and both teens were dragged into it, finally being pushed out at the entrance of some ride by someone they couldn't see.

"Perfect, a young couple! This'll boost sales!"

"Eh?" Both Kaoru and Riley were being dragged into a boat decorated like a swan by two woman in charge of the ride.

"Wait, no, you don't understand!" Riley and Kaoru squirmed, being shoved onto the boat, landing in a heap of tangled limbs, traveling into the Tunnel of Love.

"Okay, _ow_," Riley grumbled, rubbing her head.

Kaoru tried to dodge her elbow, snapping, "Stop trying to smack me in the forhead with your arm!"

"Sorry…But you know, this reminds me of when we first met."

"Oh yeah, when you crashed into Hikaru and me."

"Yeah," Riley laughed nervously, "And I kind of landed in an awkward pose on top of you, lying on my back, my head close to your butt…I jumped up so quickly I thought I was gonna hit the ceiling!"

Kaoru mumbled, "People do tend to land in awkward positions..."

At this, something clicked in their minds, and they twisted their heads to find that they had landed so that Riley was curled up in a ball, Kaoru curled up against her, straddling his legs so Riley lay between them, and his arms around her to try and protect her from the fall.

Both quickly scurried to the bench, almost tipping over the boat in the process. Kaoru cleared his throat, stuttering, "So, uh, that never, um, happened?"

"Agreed."

Both sat in awkward silence, listening to the water under them and looking around the cave. All of a sudden, a cardboard Cupid dropped down in front of them above their heads, his bow and arrow armed as he swayed back and forth, a random plastic suction cup arrow flying out from nowhere and hitting Kaoru in the head.

"Pffft... BWAHAHA!" Riley gripped her sides, dying of laughter as Kaoru pulled off the arrow, raising an eyebrow.

"That was the corniest and most idiotic thing I have ever seen," Kaoru commented, examining the arrow.

Riley waggled her fingers at him, explaining in a fake eerie voice, "You've been hit by Cupid's plastic arrow of love! You will now fall in love with the first maiden you see!"

Kaoru had a sudden burst of boldness, soothing, "That would be you, Riley."

She rolled her eyes, hamming, "Then you must kiss me, my fair love!"

"You asked." And Kaoru leaned forward, pushing his lips against Riley's, her eyes wider than planets, shock numbing her body.

As Kaoru pulled away, Rikey stared at him, then grabbed the arrow, inspecting the suction cup, mumbling, "It must have sucked out your brain when you took it off."

Kaoru rolled his eyes. "Do you see it?"

"No, your brain is still in your head..."

"Then maybe you'll realize why I kissed you in the first place."

Riley was at a loss for words, looking just plain confused, shaking her head, Kaoru sighing. "Let me try again." He pressed his lips once more against hers.

Riley's head was spinning, and she was feeling light headed. Just as Kaoru pulled away, they had come to the end of the ride, Kaoru asking, "So...?"

Riley stared at him, looking more confused than ever. Suddenly, Kaoru's confidence disappeared, as he asked, "Riley, you o-"

Before he could even finish his sentence, she was hurrying out of the boat, running into the crowd. Kaoru followed after her, yelling her name, trying to spot her in the mass of people, but she had disappeared. Eventually, he gave up, sitting down on a bench, his head in his hands. How could he let this happen? Just when he got her back, he lost her. Kaoru sighed. Maybe in the end, Riley was just better off without him.

* * *

Hikaru and Haruhi watched Riley take off from afar, Kaoru chasing after her. Hikaru's hands turned to fists as he grinded his teeth together. "Now things are worse, and it's all my fault!"

Haruhi watched him, worried. "It's not your fault, Hika-"

"Yes it is!" he snapped at her, Haruhi flinching. He sighed, apologizing, "I'm sorry, Haruhi. It's just, I should've known something would go wrong."

Haruhi took his hand in hers, asserting, "There is no way you could've known this was going to happen. It will work out in the end, no matter what."

He smiled down at the girl, both of them walking towards the exit. After a few minutes of silence, Hikaru whispered, "Thanks, Haruhi. For everything."

She smiled. "No problem, Hikaru."

* * *

Kaoru took a deep breath, taking his head out of his hands and seeing that the sky was getting dark. He stood up with a heavy heart, making his way to the exit, couples now starting to enter. His eyes caught a girl with short blond hair, and his heart skipped at the possibility. "Riley?" he asked, tapping the girl on the shoulder.

To his dismay, she had brown eyes, and no black zigzags. He mumbled an apology and continued to make his way to the exit. How could he go home, when things felt so…unfinished?

As he finally exited the carnival, onto the abandoned sidewalk, he took a deep breath, closing his eyes and breathing in the crisp and cool night air. When he opened them, he saw a lone figure approaching him at a brisk walk, her features revealed as she made her way closer to him from the glow of the streetlights. His eyes widened. "Riley...?"

"Kaoru Hitachiin," she spoke quickly, standing right in front of him, "You're unpredictable, confusing, a pain in the butt, tease me constantly, forceful, sarcastic, spontaneous, and a jerk when you want to be…" And suddenly Kaoru was caught by surprise as she grabbed the front of his coat and yanked him down to pull him into a long, passionate French kiss, never once faltering, a few boys near them hooting.

When she broke it, she looked him straight in the eye, smirking at his shocked expression and bright scarlet blush. "And that's exactly why I love you."

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't claim OHSHC as my own invention, and I'm proud to say I also never patented the Tunnel of Love.**

**There you go. A little bit of everything! Everyone randomly decided to hook up and be together (except Kyoya, who was forced to against his will) leaving Riley and Kaoru alone. And with Hikaru and Haruhi's help, the two have done more than becoming friends again. However, it looks like Hikaru and Haruhi never got to see the fruits of their labor. D:**

**Um, not much to say, really. But I like the ending. ^.^ The ending be my favorite. :D**

**So, keep reading! Enjoy and review!  
**


	13. Seperating the Athletes From the Hosts

Chapter 13

Separating the Athletes From the Hosts

"HEADS UP!" Riley spotted the soccer ball flying at high-speed towards her in the nick of time, scooting out of the way.

An older boy with mousy brown hair and dull hazel eyes came running towards her, wearing his soccer uniform. "Gomen," he gave a slight bow, apologizing.

Riley picked up the ball, tossing it from hand to hand, replying, "That's fine, dude. Hey, aren't you on the Ouran Soccer Team?"

The boy raised a brow. He mumbled sarcastically, "What was your first guess? The jersey or the fact that I'm playing on the Ouran soccer field?"

Riley's eyes widened as she twisted her head around vigorously, yelling, "Holy crap! I knew I was lost, but I didn't think I was _this_ lost!"

"Eh, yeah. You're walking through the middle of the field." The guy sweat-dropped, then seemed to realize something. "Hey! You're Riley Davidson! From the Host Club!"

Riley beamed, looking almost like Tamaki would've, yipping, "Cool! I'm famous!"

"Well yeah. After the concert you did, practically everybody knows who you are."

"Awesome!" They stared at each other for a minute, before Riley cocked her head to the side, asking, "Who are you?"

The boy pointed to himself, confidently saying, "You're in the presence of Minoru Dezaki!" Riley continued to stare at the proud and cocky boy, her face blank and clueless. At her lack of response, the boy sweat-dropped once more, adding, "You know…the star of the soccer team…?"

Riley simply kept staring at Minoru, the boy staring back. Suddenly she yelled, "You blinked! Ten bonus points!"

"Eh…never mind…so, what are you doing out here so far away from the Host Club? Isn't it about time for it?"

Riley looked down sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head. "Well, I, um, kind of zoned out, and when I finally realized where I was, your soccer ball of death was heading towards my head for a one-hit KO."

"Oh, sorry about that. Sometimes I can't control my power when I kick, so I have to practice," he explained.

Riley nodded, excited. "Yeah, same with me!"

"You've played soccer before?"

"No, but it sure looks like fun!"

Minoru grinned, pointing to the ball she was still holding, asking, "Why don't you give it a shot? Try and kick it as hard as you can!"

"Okay!" Riley dropped the soccer ball onto the ground, and placed her school bag off to the side. She stared at the ball, and then raised her right leg high off the ground behind her, and while kicking yelled in a very war-like cry, causing the entire soccer team (including the coach) to turn and stare, "FOR NARNIA!"

Everyone on the soccer field watched in awe as her foot struck the ball, sending it sailing all the way across the half of the field they were facing, over the goal, and another fifty feet, until it hit a football player practicing on the head.

All their mouths hit the floor, as Riley turned to Minoru, asking innocently, "How was that?"

Minoru turned to her, his mouth gaping. "How did you do that?"

"Well, I do a lot of endurance and strength training for my performing, and I do tumbling, too. But why is everyone staring?"

"Because that was amazing!" The coach had come up to the two of them, startling them a bit. He asked, "Son, why don't you try playing a round of soccer? I would love to see what you can do on the field!"

Riley shrugged. "Meh, Kyoya's going to murder me for being late anyway. Might as well go full-out."

"That's the spirit!" The coach beamed, yelling, "Now get out there and show us what you can do!"

"Yes sir, Mr. Coach sir! But just one question."

"Yes son?"

"…How do you play soccer?"

* * *

"WAH! WE'LL NEVER FIND RILEY NOW!" Tamaki wailed, the entire club wondering where in the world the girl was, their customers worried as well.

Kyoya watched as Riley's customers waited anxiously, a few murmuring something about leaving soon. They needed to drag that girl over here, and fast!

"Found her!" Charlie and Alex yelled out in unison. Well, that was faster than he expected. Alex and Charlie were pointing out a window, the hosts rushing over, their customers following. "She's playing soccer with the soccer team," Alex explained, watching the players run around.

"Wacky's actually pretty good," the twins mumbled.

"Let's go get him right now!" Tamaki declared, leading the stampede of fangirls and hosts out the door and into the hallway, making their way to the soccer field.

* * *

"Pass, Riley!" Riley looked up to her left, the ball rolling along in front of her. She was about to be blocked off, so did as Minoru instructed, passing the soccer ball to him with an expert kick.

She was slightly panting, and watched as Minoru scored the winning goal, a small smile on her face. The coach came up to her, patting her on the back. "You've got some real potential there, Riley," he complimented, beaming. "We could really use a player like you on the team."

"Yeah, with the tournament coming up, we need all the talent we can get," Minoru added, walking up to her.

Before another word could be exchanged, the entire Host Club and all its customers were surrounding the field, the hosts coming up to Riley. "What is this all about?" Kyoya asked, never one out of the loop.

Minoru beamed. "You should've seen him out there! Riley was really dominating!"

The coach nodded, adding, "It would be an honor to have you on our team, Riley."

The hosts gaped. Riley simply stared at the entire Host Club, blinking. "Took you guys long enough! What, did you assume I was dead, or something?"

"What do you say, Riley?" Minoru asked, trying to be as clear as possible with the strange girl, or boy as he thought. "Will you join the soccer team?"

Hunny asked, "But aren't the soccer team practices at the same time as the Host Club?"

Minoru passed Riley the ball, and she caught it, staring at the soccer star as he tried to persuade her. "C'mon, Riley. You could be a hero to everyone!"

The Host Club watched, tense. A few fangirls screamed at Riley to not do it, a few soccer players screaming back for her to choose the soccer team. She simply bit her lip, looking between the two groups.

That's when her eyes caught Kaoru's. In that half of a millisecond, when she saw the boy she had fallen for, his eyes pleading her not to leave her friends behind, her mind was completely made up. "I'll pass." She tossed the ball back to a very shocked Minoru, the fangirls cheering.

"But, why?" The coach asked, stupefied.

Riley simply started walking to the hosts, yelling over her shoulder, "I don't leave my friends behind! Besides, I'm a performer, not an athlete!"

The customers and club made their way back to the clubroom, the Host Club resuming its normal activities. Once they were cleaning up, Kyoya approached Riley, telling her, "Thank you for making the wise decision to stay with us, Riley."

"What decision? It was so obvious that I was gonna choose you guys."

"Still, with the school tournament coming up, the soccer team has proven that they're willing to recruit anyone athletic."

Riley looked puzzled. "What tournament?"

Tamaki butted in, explaining with a flourish, "Clubs all across Ouran gather to compete for the honor of being declared the best club of all! You're given a plaque that you keep until the next tournament! Unfortunately, the Host Club didn't win last year, but we are sure to win with our fighting spirit this year!"

Riley beamed, yipping, "Count me in!"

Kaoru came up beside her, rolling his eyes. "I don't think Kyoya would give you a choice anyway."

Kyoya adjusted his glasses, the lenses catching a glint. "Is that a compliment?"

Kaoru and Riley gulped, both stuttering, "Y-yes."

* * *

"Hey Riley!" The girl turned around, Alex and Charlie stopping as well to see Kaoru running towards them.

"You guys go ahead," Riley ushered them on towards the limo, already walking towards the ginger, "I'll catch up in a second."

As the two continued walking, Riley giggled as Kaoru picked her up and twirled her around in the air, laughing, "What did you do that for?"

"As a thank you for staying."

She hugged him, whispering, "It was a no brainer."

He walked her to her limo. "So, no one knows we're together," he told her.

"Yeah, and I don't want to blow my secret to the school and lose a years worth of Pocky to my parents-"

"I meant our siblings and friends, Riley."

"Oh."

They walked on in silence, mulling it over in their heads. Finally, Riley turned her head to Kaoru, asking, "How should we tell them?"

"I have no clue. I guess just tell them tonight. No need to make a big deal about it…"

"Aw, Kaoru, you know that I have to shock them with it in a big way."

Riley stopped as she saw her sisters looking towards the two, smiling, as if thinking they had made up. Riley took Kaoru's hand, deciding now was the time to show them that they had done more than apologize.

Kaoru got the hint, and waved over to his twin at their limo, catching his attention. In fact, they had unknowingly managed to catch the attention of the rest of the Host Club as well, as Kaoru lifted Riley up in the air by her waist, and then put her down on the ground, Riley leaning in and kissing him gently.

When they looked to see the other's reactions, most were half shocked, half not, nodding in a "knew it" kind of way. Tamaki, however, was a different story.

"WHAT IS THAT DOPPELGANGER DOING TO MY DAUGHTER?" Tamaki continued to rant, pointing, and yelling at Kaoru to step away from the innocent girl. Charlie sighed, rolled her eyes, and made her way over to him, silencing him by giving him a peck on the cheek.

"Just let them be, Tamaki," she soothed, waving goodbye as she made her way back to her limo.

The others began to get into their rides, Riley and Kaoru waving to each other until they finally settled into their limos.

Riley was greeted with two smirks, Alex snickering deviously, "Just wait until Dad finds out."

Charlie leaned towards her sister, asking her with a glint in her eye, "So, how many times have you kissed Kaoru? I'm sure Mom and Dad would _love_ to hear _that_."

Riley stared at the two, her face blank. They had her right where they wanted her, torturing her, as older sisters should. There was only one thing to say at a time like this: "Riley is not here at the moment, please leave a message after the beep…beeeeep…"(1)

* * *

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran or it's soccer team. But I do own Minoru! (Not like anyone cares)**

**TA-DA! Consider this little soccer influenced chapter my dedication to the ending of the FIFA World Cup! Go Spain! **

**(1) I have actually said this in real life using my name more than once...oh yeah, I'm so inspiring, I inspire myself sometimes.  
**

**So ya, now everyone in the Host Club knows that Kaoru and Riley are together, there's a school-wide tournament for clubs coming up, and Riley is a good athlete. She's still not good with academics, though... Okay, next up, preparing for the tournament and the tournament itself!**

**As always, read and enjoy!  
**


	14. Bringing Home the Gold

Chapter 14

Bringing Home the Gold

Another day at the Host Club had come and gone, and the hosts were all cleaning up, their guests leaving and buzzing about the tournament.

"I think we should all wear matching uniforms!" Tamaki randomly proclaimed, the others mostly ignoring him.

Charlie asked, puzzled, "What kind of uniforms?"

"You know, sweatshirts and pants, like commoners would wear!"

Before Haruhi could point out that most "commoners" didn't wear matching sweats to anything, Kyouya told him, "It's a _scavenger hunt_, Tamaki. We won't be needing to wear anything too athletic. Our school uniforms will do us just fine." Not to mention save them money.

"Then how about a cosplay!" Tamaki's face lit up as he looked to Riley, Haruhi, and Charlie, who were all cleaning up the same table. "And Daddy's little girls can finally wear dresses! We'll just say you're cross-dressing."

"That might not be such a good idea," Alex told him, seeming to appear out of nowhere, although she had just been quietly cleaning in the corner. She walked towards the blond and Kyouya, holding up a folded piece of paper in between her right index and middle finger. "I just found this in my bag, and it appears to be a threat."

Kyouya raised a brow, watching as Tamaki snatched the paper and began to read it. "Of what kind?" he asked, trying to read over Tamaki's shoulder, the rest of the club following suit.

Tamaki read aloud, "Dear Davidson 'Brothers'. I know your secret. Have the Host Club drop out of the tournament, or I will reveal your gender."

The Host Club stared at the piece of paper, tension in the air. This situation was important, top priority, and needed their full and undivided attention, along with all their brains.

"You know, they did a pretty bad job of gluing the magazine letters to the paper."

Alex deadpanned, "If you're not going to say something intelligent, then shut up, Riley."

Hunny piped up, "Who do you think sent it?"

"I don't know," Tamaki announced, yelling, "But we're going to stop them no matter the cost!"

Haruhi rolled her eyes, muttering, "Just what I need. More stress."

Out of the blue, Riley plucked the letter out of Tamaki's hands wordlessly, walking out of the room with a faraway look in her eyes. "Eh," Hikaru asked, staring after her like the others, "What's your girlfriend up to, Kaoru?"

"…I have absolutely no clue."

Kyouya simply smirked, not even bothering to go after her, "It seems she's solving our problem for us."

* * *

"WHERE THE HÖLLE IS MINORU DEZAKI?"

The entire soccer team seemed to flinch simultaneously at the harsh voice, the game forgotten as a very ticked off Riley stomped onto the field, the letter crumpled in her hand.

The coach seemed to brighten, ignoring her foul mood and chirping, "Ah, I see you've decided to join-"

"Can it, Coach! If someone doesn't bring me Minoru Dezaki right now, I'm going to tie your soccer team into the world's most painful knot. Now where is he?" Riley growled, fire burning in her eyes.

The coach was taken aback to say the least, and immediately hollered, "Dezaki! Get out here!"

The said boy weaved his way around the other players who watched. He didn't look over to Riley, asking the coach in a very shaky voice, "Y-yes?"

"Come with me, Minoru," Riley soothed, wrapping her arm around him and leading him to an empty courtyard, the boy shaking and nervous, "We're going to have a little chat."

As soon as they were hidden, Riley asked in a dangerously soft and compassionate voice, causing Minoru to freak out even more, "So, can you tell me what this is?"

Minoru looked up to see that she was standing in front of him, his back against a wall, holding the threat in front of her with one hand. He was cornered, no way of escape within sight. He answered warily, "A letter…"

"A letter, he says," Riley chuckled to herself, examining the letter. "But do you know what this looks like to me, Minoru? Do you?"

"N-no…"

Riley smiled at him warmly, sending another shiver up his spine. "Really? Because you would know, considering you sent this."

He replied unintelligently, "…No I didn't…"

This time, Riley grabbed the collar of his jersey, pushing him against the wall forcefully, his eyes wide as she hissed, "Don't play dumb with me. I know it was you. What did you see? How do you know? And don't you dare try to lie again."

Minoru gulped, bursting out, "I trailed you after you left the Host Club to try and ask you to join the soccer team again. But then I saw you kiss Kaoru, and I got suspicious, and went home, and researched it a lot and found out you and your 'brothers' are girls."

Riley held his gaze for another painfully long minute, burning a hole through him, before finally letting go of his collar and stepping back, hissing, "Knew it."

He let out the breath that he was holding, watching as Riley crumpled up the letter into a ball. She growled, stepping closer to him and pointing at him, staring him right in the nervous eye, "Now you listen here and you listen good. Nobody, and I mean _nobody_ threatens my family, my friends, or my pocky. And you just did all three. Give me one good reason not to beat you to a pulp."

"I swear I won't tell!" Minoru burst out, beginning to sweat under her glare.

"Oh really? Prove it."

"N-no one will believe me! And if I do tell, you can do wha-whatever you want to me!"

She held his gaze, her face and voice never softening. "Fine," she snapped, stepping back again and letting him breathe, "But you better stay true to your word or I will personally see to it that you have an 'accident'."

Minoru watched, still shaking a little as she began to walk away, tossing the wadded up letter at his feet, asserting, "We won't be having this problem again. Oh, and we never had this talk."

He simply stared after her, his eyes then darting to the threat. "That chick is scarier than I would've ever imagined. How does she do that…?"

* * *

"Taken care of!" Riley chirped with a smile as she opened up the doors to the Host Club, all traces of demon gone.

Charlie raised a brow, asking, "Who was it?"

"Minoru. Don't worry, we talked it out, and everything's fine now."

Hikaru and Kaoru came up on either side of her, asking, "What kind of talk, wacky?"

"Well, he may start shaking whenever he sees me, but it's perfectly normal."

Both twins rolled their eyes, mumbling sarcastically, "Yeah, sure, Riley."

"If we're done with all of this nonsense," Tamaki asked, "Then may we get on with our game plan? The tournament is only a few days away!"

They didn't believe her. Of course. Riley smiled, watching as the others gathered around a table, throwing out ideas and arguing.

But that was okay, because they didn't need to know just how badly she wanted to keep them all together.

* * *

"I can't believe I ever agreed to wear this," Alex deadpanned, looking quite unenthusiastic in her Harry Potter cosplay.

"I don't know," Riley beamed, moving around in the robe, "It's actually kinda comfy. I can practically feel the power coursing through my veins!"

Of course, no one was an actual character. Instead, they were all dressed as male students from Griffindor, because apparently that's the house that anyone who's anybody gets into.

All the different clubs were lined up, waiting in the main courtyard as the student council went over some final decisions, until finally a very sickly looking student body president stepped forward, announcing with a cough, "And now, to announce your –cough- first clue! A place to clean –cough- things, that's not that clean –cough- itself!"

The clubs were already off and running, all of them trying to find the janitor's closet. However, the Host Club stayed behind, mulling it over. "It can't be that simple," Haruhi muttered. "There has to be more to it."

"Soup!"

All heads turned to Riley, baffled looks on their faces. She sighed, explaining, "We had soup as a lunch option today."

Kyouya raised a brow, surprised she had caught on this quickly. Of course, he had already figured it out, but this way was far more amusing. He prodded her, "And…?"

"And where would you clean those soup bowls?"

"The kitchen!" Hunny chirped.

Kaoru nodded, "Right, makes sense since the kitchen isn't always spotless."

"Let's head off, team!" Tamaki proclaimed, leading the stampede to the kitchen, Haruhi lagging behind.

No one seemed to notice, except for Hikaru, who realized that she was so behind that while the others were already three quarters of the way there, Haruhi was just managing to reach the halfway point. He jogged back, sniggering, "Wow, Haruhi, I think you've actually gotten slower."

She told him, a little breathless, "I'm not athletic and you know that."

"I know," Hikaru nodded, a devilish smile making its way onto his face, "And that's why I'm here to help."

Haruhi knew this couldn't be good. Still, she asked, "And how?"

"I snuck in a skateboard under this robe. It's bigger than you might think." And indeed, attached to the inside of his robe with Velcro was a small, fairly expensive skateboard, which he took out and laid down on the ground for Haruhi.

"I don't know how to skateboard," she deadpanned, simply staring at the board.

Hikaru rolled his eyes, insisting, "Just get on."

She did as he said, still skeptical about his plan. Next, he took off his scarf, ordering, "Hold onto this. I'm going to go a little slow at first, but I'll speed up if you don't fall on your face."

Haruhi's eyes widened. "Hikaru, I'm not very balanced!" she protested. However, he simply grinned at her, and began to take off, Haruhi biting her lip as she did her best to remain standing on the board, and finding it surprisingly easy. Well, it was better than running at least.

After a few minutes, when they had almost caught up to everyone, Haruhi told him, "You know you don't have to do this, Hikaru. I could just try running faster…"

"I know." He looked back at her, a genuine beam on his face as he explained warmly, "But I want to."

Haruhi felt a light blush creep to her cheeks as he turned back to face forward, still running. She never needed anybody. She was independent, always able to stand on her own. And yet, here was Hikaru, willing to help. And to her own surprise and amusement, she wasn't going to stop him. Haruhi thought to herself, _What's going on with me…?_

Once they had caught up with the others, Hikaru hid the skateboard in his robe, pouting because Haruhi hadn't let him pull her around everywhere. He had thought it would be fun… "Found the clue," Alex muttered, pointing to a plain white soap bottle with black writing on it.

Tamaki examined it closely, reading aloud, "Help stop the spread of germs by using Dove hand so-"

"Oh give me that," Charlie huffed, rolling her eyes as he whimpered, explaining slightly softer, "You were reading the back, Tamaki, not the clue." Pressed for time, she read quickly, "Your next clue is in a place that's black, white, and red all over."

Riley pouted, whining, "Aw, I hate the newspaper riddle!"

"To the newspaper club, then," Kaoru announced, beating Tamaki and enjoying the annoyed look on his face while also dragging Riley along by the wrist, Hikaru putting the skateboard back on the ground for Haruhi.

* * *

Once at the Newspaper Club, they found it deserted, a fresh paper on the desk. Hunny read the headline, "Hurry, your next clue is in a place that tells us you're late!" He looked to the others, asking, "What does that mean?"

Alex nudged Mori in the ribs, the boy looking slightly taken aback, but simply nodded at her 'you know the answer because you took me there' look. "Clock tower," he grunted, the others running.

Once the others were out of earshot, Alex asked Mori, a rare but warm smile on her face, "Do you think that little sparrow's wing is all healed?"

He smiled back, answering, "Yes, I set it free this morning."

"It was extremely compassionate of you to have been taking care of it all this time in the clock tower. But why did you decide to show me?"

Mori told her simply, already turning to leave, "Sometimes actions speak greater than words."

He left her there, Alex mulling it over for a minute alone. She supposed he was right, and Mori was certainly the perfect example for that philosophy. Still, she wanted to hear his deep, warm voice more often... Shaking her head, as if to rid herself of the thought, she jogged after the others to the entrance of the clock tower.

* * *

"Wow, the clock tower is really tall," Charlie muttered, straining her neck to see the top. The color began to drain from her face, and her voice trailed off, Charlie herself looking a bit woozy. "Really, really tall..."

Alex told the others, "Charlie is afraid of heights. Ever since I can remember she's been terrified. She had to take a sleeping pill just to survive the flight to Japan."

"I'll stay with her," Tamaki told the others, entwining his fingers with hers. He smiled gently at her, and Charlie slowly smiled back.

Haruhi nodded, muttering, "I won't be able to keep up with you all, and the skateboard won't work on the stairs."

Hikaru sniggered, smirking, "I could give you a piggy back ride."

"No."

"Very well then," Kyouya cut in, with a 'let's speed this up the other clubs are catching up to us' voice, "Tamaki, Charlie, Haruhi, and Hikaru will stay back. Everyone else follow me and keep your eyes peeled for the next clue."

As the others left, Tamaki asked, "So why are you afraid of heights, Charlotte?"

"I don't really know," she sighed, trying her best not to look at the clock tower again and get nauseous, "But I always panic and get vertigo."

Tamaki squeezed her hand a little tighter, soothing, "Well don't worry, I'm here."

"I know," she breathed, finally setting on just admiring his violet eyes.

* * *

"So Haruhi, was the skateboard a good idea or what?"

"I have to admit, it was fairly clever."

"Are you kidding? It was totally awesome! Admit it, I'm a genius."

"...It wasn't that great, Hikaru."

"Fine, I guess you're right... But I am a genius, right?"

"You're clever, I'll give you that."

"...I'll take it."

* * *

Kaoru read the clue aloud, which was a note card taped to the back of the clock, "If you were a Davidson, where would you be?" He looked up, asking, "Why in the world would the student council give that kind of clue?"

Alex peered over his shoulder, her eyes widening. She took the card from him, yelling to Riley, "This is mom's handwriting! They're here!"

"Holy catfish we have to get to the theater!"

Leaving the others in the dust, the two sprinted back down, the others shrugging and following them quickly. As soon as Riley's feet hit the ground outside, she told Charlie, barely slowing her pace, "Mom and Dad are here!"

"What?" All fear gone from her face, she ran after her two sisters, the rest of the club following, Haruhi happily rolling along on the skateboard.

* * *

The doors to the theater burst open, revealing an empty stage and audience, no one here but the Host Club. "This sucks," Hikaru suddenly said, filling the empty and silent theater with sound, "I bet the other teams are already-"

"Ladies and gentleman, kindly take your seats," a voice boomed out of nowhere, loud and deep, each word pronounced perfectly. "And to the young fellow who doubts Mr. and Mrs. Davidson I do dearly hope you weren't wishing to make a good impression on us."

Hikaru raised a brow, the others slightly stunned. The Davidson Sisters only beamed, Charlie laughing, "This is just like them!"

"I call shotgun!"

"We're in a _theater_, Riley, there is no shotgun."

The voice suddenly boomed again, "Just hurry up and take your seats before the others get here, the show is scheduled to be sold out. And congratulations, yes, you have won the scavenger hunt! Therefore, we'll need Riley, Charlie, and Alex to report to the stage for a performance."

The three made their way over, Riley sprinting and hopping up on stage, exclaiming, "Riley the Great has no need for such inconveniences as stairs!"

"Yeah, but the Charlotte the Awesome and Alexandria the Stupendous do," Charlie muttered, her and Alex taking the stairs on the side, the Host Club seating themselves.

Hunny beamed, "This is going to be so much fun!"

Sure enough, the other clubs filed in, taking seats and muttering, listening to the voice coming from somewhere they couldn't see, giving out instructions.

Finally, as all the competitors from the scavenger hunt were seated, the lights were dimmed, Riley, Charlie, and Alex slightly smiling at each other and laughing as they waited. Riley smiled the most, thinking about just how much closer they had become compared to the beginning of the year.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen," the same voice told the audience, "If you have a cell phone, please silence it, before a teacher takes it. And if you have a pager, for Pete's sake stop living in the Stone Age and get a cell phone already!" The crowd laughed at the comment, the voice continuing, "And now, the Davidson Brothers will perform an improv. Their prompt: Secrets. Now everyone, this is an open, friendly environment, where we all can learn from each other and gently help each other along. So please stare at these three until they feel uncomfortable and laugh loudly if they make a mistake or have an embarrassing moment."

A spotlight hit the three, and they looked to each other, nodding. In a split second they were in character, and Charlie looked at Riley and Alex suspiciously, asking cautiously, "So what were you two doing last night that you got home so late and with goody bags?"

Riley looked nervous and acted nonchalant, laughing nervously, "Oh, nothing much, really…"

"Just seeing a friend of ours," Alex added, not meeting Charlie's eyes.

"Oh really?" She accused, "Because it sounds a whole lot like you two were at the party that I wasn't invited to…_again_."

Riley and Alex became overly bewildered, spouting things such as, "Party? What party? Pffft, there wasn't a party! What would make you say that?"

Charlie raised a brow, the crowd laughing as she deadpanned, "You came home with goody bags and yelling 'That was such an awesome party'."

"Did we?" Riley asked. "Well, uh, there's a very logical explanation behind it… which Alex will explain!"

"What? Why me?" She gulped as she saw Charlie's suspicious glare, chuckling nervously, "I mean, of course there's an explanation!"

There was an awkward pause, until Charlie finally prodded, dubious, "I'm waiting…"

"Well, we didn't tell you about the party because, uh…" Alex searched her mind, finally chirping, "It was filled with people we knew you would hate."

"Like who?"

Riley asked, faltering, "Oh, you know… that girl… that you don't like… she was there… and then there were those guys…"

"What were their names?"

"…Well, uh… Geez, we don't know," Alex saved, adding, "We were trying to stay away from them the entire night."

Charlie finally huffed, yelling, "This is just like you two! You never take me to these parties because you always think I'm going to ruin your fun! God, you're so predictable!"

"What's this?" It was that same voice from earlier, and soon, a tall man with curly light brown hair and green eyes made his entrance from the wings. "Are my dear children arguing once more?"

"What?" Another voice, this one female, filled the theater, an elegant woman with long, flowing blond hair and blue eyes entering from the opposite wings, asking, "Did I hear right? Are you three fighting?"

"Yes, Mom and Dad, we are," Charlie huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "Did you know that Alex and Riley went to a party that I wasn't invited to?"

"Well yes, of course," their father soothed, placing a hand on Alex's shoulder, telling them, "But you all shouldn't keep such trivial secrets."

Their mother added, taking her place by their dad's side, "Speaking of secrets; isn't there something we should tell the students?"

The Host Club suddenly became very aware that they weren't acting anymore, and the rest of the audience quickly picked up on it as well.

All three asked nervously in unison, "What do you mean?"

Their father smiled, turning to face the students sitting in the audience, announcing, "Would Haruhi Fujioka please report to the stage?"

Not a good sign. Haruhi warily made her way up, standing awkwardly next to Charlie, off to the side. "Yes?" she asked, plainly as ever.

"It's time that everyone knows," their mother began.

_Oh._

Their father ended with a dramatic flourish, "That all four of you are really girls."

_Snap.

* * *

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran, Dove hand soap, or anything else mentioned in this story that belongs to someone else.**

**I'm proud of myself. I finally managed to whip up a chapter, and I like it. =3= **

**Oh, and by the way: Holle with the two little dots over the o in German does not mean 'hole'. Look it up.  
**

**There's so much in this chapter, that I'll simply point out some of my favorite things and quote some of my favorite lines, which I should really get copyrighted... Can't be too careful these days... . But yeah, you can just skip this part and review. On to the *hopefully* funny end notes!  
**

**Writing about Riley's dark side was fun. Yeah, she can be pretty intimidating/scary/violent/mean when it comes to those three things. But any other time she just can't pull it off. (Unless she's acting, but even then it's not that dark...)**

**Anybody else notice the fact that all the heroes are in Gryffindor? What, are Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff just not good enough for ya? (And no, I haven't actually read an entire HP book, just most of two, so I really shouldn't be talking...)**

**Velcro Skateboard. Someone should get it patented, just saying.**

**Tamaki examined it closely, reading aloud, "Help stop the spread of germs by using Dove hand so-" ...Face it, you know he would do it XD**

**...Took me at least a year to finally understand that newspaper riddle...**

**Oh ho ho ho! Do I spot a hint of MorixAlex? ;)**

**Yeah, Charlie's afraid of heights, for no real reason, just an irrational fear. Anyway, we know Riley has a fear of being alone/abandoned (hence why she tries to keep everyone together all the time), and Alex's fear will be revealed later.**

**"Riley the Great has no need for such inconveniences as stairs!" ...You laugh now, but the next time you jump instead of using stairs, you'll be yelling this but using your own name.**

**And you're probably thinking: Wait a minute! Their parents bet Pocky that they couldn't pass of as boys, are eccentric, overly dramatic, and just randomly popped up and revealed to the whole school that the four cross-dressers are really girls. What kind of parents are they? Answer: Awesome ones.**

**Whew, I think that just about covers it. As always, read and enjoy!  
**


	15. A Slight Mix Up

Chapter 15

A Slight Mix Up

The entire room was silent, awkward, and tense. And Riley never could stand silences. "Does that mean we lose the bet?" she asked loudly, the others simply staring, trying to grasp what they had just learned.

"No, we actually have quite a good reason to reveal your gender," their mother told them gently, adding, "No one wins or loses."

Haruhi asked, "So what am I doing here?"

"I think I can help explain that," a voice rose up from the audience, Chairman Suoh seeming to appear out of thin air, although technically he had just been practicing his ninja skills by hiding in the back row. He climbed onto the stage, looking very official, his assistant behind him, as he told everyone, "Yes, these four are all ladies. While they have their own reasons to pretend to be boys, we need to put that aside and get to the much more exciting news!"

"Exciting?" Alex asked, dubious. She was quite aware of all the stares.

Their father beamed, looking over to the Chairman as he said, "Ah, yes, we made sure to let Suoh know of our bet before you began school. We've been close friends for a few years now, which is why Charlie, or Charlotte, is engaged to Tamaki."

A few fangirls let out disappointed sighs, as if thinking that they ever had a chance. Their brains had just about completely fried, and were now trying to focus on the one thing they did know about.

"Well that's a rip off," Riley complained loudly, grumbling, "I don't get my pocky only to tell the whole school what I've known for a while now."

"That's not quite it," Chairman Suoh added, smiling at her.

Their father nodded, explaining, "We would like to make two more engagements public. The first, being with Alexandria, and a certain Takashi Morinozuka."

Alex could feel her face heating up, and Riley instantly yelled out, causing the girl to glare at her, "She's blushing! She's blushing!"

"You're about to blush, too, Riley," their mother teased, explaining, "Because you are engaged to Hikaru Hitachiin."

Silence. Not a single sound in the auditorium. Until, simultaneously, Hikaru, Kaoru, Haruhi, and Riley asked, "EH?"

Their father looked confused, asking, "What's wrong, Riley? I thought you liked him…"

Riley said nothing. She couldn't. She also couldn't see anything, and watched as the world turned black, a few people squealing and some yelling her name, shocked, as she passed out.

* * *

_I was floating in a blue sky, clouds surrounding me. There was no one, and I started to panic, looking around, trying to move but not being able to._

_ Looking all around, I finally saw Alex, Charlie, and Kaoru floating in front of me, standing and levitating, looking like they knew exactly what they were doing. I yelled to them, "Guys! What's going on! I can't move!"_

_ "Riley, we have to go," Alex told me, her face blank and emotionless._

_ "What? Where?" I whimpered._

_ Charlie added, lifelessly, "We have to leave right now."_

_ I felt tears coming to my eyes. "N-no," I stuttered, "Yo-you can't just leave m-me here alone…"_

_ Kaoru looked at me, just like Charlie and Alex, no expression or love in his eyes. "Sorry Riley, but you said so yourself, you can't move. And we have to leave." No emotion, just plain and simple._

_ It was like they suddenly didn't care about me anymore. I could be dying and they wouldn't care. I started crying, trying with all my might to move towards them, yelling at them to wait for me, to not leave._

_ "Goodbye, Riley," Alex muttered, Mori suddenly appearing by her side as they walked off, disappearing into a cloud. Suddenly, all the life and emotion was back in her, as if I had drained her of happiness and now that she was with Mori, she was giddy._

_ Tamaki appeared next to Charlie, who mumbled, "Bye Riley." The two of them laughed as Tamaki tried to waltz with her into a cloud, Charlie spinning and giggling and having the time of her life._

_ "Kaoru," I pleaded, my energy drained, a lump in my throat, "Please don't leave. I-I thought you really liked me."_

_ "I like you, Riley," he muttered, cold. Suddenly, there was Haruhi, tugging at his arm. He smiled warmly at her, wrapping his arm around her waist as she protested. Kaoru turned back to me, completely breaking my heart by explaining smoothly, "But I found out I love Haruhi. And I'm afraid that leaves you with no one."_

_ And then they were all gone, and instead of a peaceful sky, I was in utter black, spiraling down. I let out a deep breath, not even caring anymore. As far as I knew, me falling down a black hole and disappearing for good would be the best thing for everybody…_

_ "Riley…"_

_ There was a voice. It sounded familiar._

_ "Riley…"_

_ "Riley, wake up…"_

_ "Wake up Riley…"_

_ "Riley, can you hear me?"_

_ No, it was a collection of voices; all trying to bring me back to the surface. Why should I let them pull me up, to wake me, when all I would end up doing in the end was drowning?  


* * *

_

"Riley, honey, please wake up…"

Riley groaned, muttering something in German as she rubbed her forehead, slowly letting her eyes open and propping herself up on her elbows. She blinked, then squinted, growing accustomed to the bright light, being able to make out the shapes and faces of her mom, dad, Charlie, and Alex.

"Wh-where am I? How long was I out?" she asked, still rubbing her head. She sat up, suddenly quite aware that the Host Club was nowhere in sight.

Her mother smiled, soothing, "Only an hour. We had to take you to the infirmary. You gave the students quite a scare, there, honey."

"Are you all right?" their father asked. "Why did you pass out?"

"Wrong twin," Alex muttered, examining her youngest sister.

Charlie nodded, explaining to their slightly baffled mom and dad, "Riley liked Kaoru Hitachiin, and Haruhi likes Hikaru Hitachiin, although if you ask Haruhi she'll say she likes neither."

"Oh." Their mother and father looked at each other.

"Well," their dad muttered, "Talk about the screw up of the century…"

"Can you change it?" Riley asked, bringing her knees into her chest.

Their mom sighed, "I'm sorry, Riley, but it's not that simple. It will take a while, but we'll do what we can…" A beep was heard, and their mom reached into her pocket, biting her lip as she read a text message. She looked over to her husband, whispering, "Sweetie, we have to get going to the banquet, or we'll be late."

"Right," their father nodded, giving Riley a kiss on the forehead, smiling at her, "Hang in there, Raccoon. We'll work this out somehow."

The trio watched as their parents hurried out, the nurse walking over and asking Riley a few questions, then telling her that she could go ahead and leave.

"Oh, and before I forget," the nurse added, the three sisters stopping in the doorway, "Your friends, they said they were the Host Club, mentioned that when Riley woke up they would be waiting for you in the Music Room."

"Better go see them," Charlie laughed nervously, the three of them continuing to walk now, "Tamaki just about had a heart-attack the second you started falling."

Riley said nothing, looking quite pensive. Alex exchanged an anxious look with Charlie, asking quietly, "What's wrong, Riley?"

The said girl looked up at her, blinking, and stopped walking, asking, "Do you love me? Like a sister, obviously."

"If I didn't I would've killed you by now because you're so annoying. Why?"

"Would you ever leave me or choose Tamaki or Mori over me?"

Charlie sighed, "Not this again, Riley. You're our _sister_, you always come first. That's a no-brainer."

"Oh, just wanted to check." She thought for another minute, before adding, staring at the two blankly, "Do you think Kaoru loves me?"

Alex and Charlie stared at her, not sure how to answer that. Finally, Alex told her, exasperated, "Why in the world are you asking so many stupid questions?"

"You didn't answer the supposed stupid question yet. Do you think Kaoru loves me?"

Charlie smiled, answering, "Yes. Now explain."

Riley looked at the ground, mumbling, "It's just that… what if he doesn't love me? What if, all this time, he's loved Haruhi? What if, he loves her more than me? Than that would mean-"

"Riley," Alex snapped, grabbing her shoulders, "Shut. Up. I love you. Charlie loves you. Kaoru loves you. The entire freaking Host Club loves you. Stop acting like this before I strangle you and let's hurry up so they can see that you're okay."

Riley stared at her, Charlie hanging back nervously. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the girl with blond hair and two black zigzags cracked a grin, wriggling out of Alex's grasp and chirping as she took off down the hallway, "Last one there buys the other two Pocky!"

Alex let out a small breath of relief, looking over to Charlie. "Do you think she'll be all right?"

"Frankly, I'm more concerned about you."

"Why?"

"Because I'm about to take off sprinting at high speed and you'll be stuck paying for Riley's 20 or so boxes of chocolate Pocky."

* * *

"RILEY~!" Tamaki glomped the girl as soon as she opened the door, bringing her victory dance to a sharp halt. Charlie followed in after, with Alex behind. "Oh my darling daughter!" Tamaki cooed, completely unaware that Riley was gasping for air, "You had me so worried! Do you remember your name? Do you remember your daddy? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Charlie rolled her eyes, explaining to Tamaki, "She's going to pass out again if you don't let go of her."

"Oopsie! So sorry mon amie!"(1)

"That's okay, mein freund_."_(2)

"Are you okay, Riley?" Haruhi asked, a look of concern on her face.

Riley beamed. "Never better."

"Do you feel fine?" Kyouya asked, in his subtle and medical way of caring, "Did the nurse say you were okay?"

"Yup!"

"Do you need to eat some cake, Riley? Cake always makes me feel better!"

"I'm good, Hunny."

"You sure?"

"Yes, Mori."

Hikaru and Kaoru said nothing, hanging back. As the others began to dissolve, buzzing amongst themselves and making plans for what to do now that the school knew their secret, Kaoru looked over to his twin.

A silent conversation ensued, simply by exchanging glances.

_ What do we do now?_

_ I don't know, Hikaru._

_ Can't we change this? This messes up everything!_

_ I know, but we can't. Mom will probably change it in a month or so._

_ Yeah, but…_

_ But what?_

_ …I never even thought about marrying Haruhi…_

_ …_

_ …Stupid daydreams of when I'm bored to death in class don't count…_

_ Sure they don't._

_ Would you shut up?_

_ Make me. We aren't even talking._

_ Fine, then I won't look at you._

_ …_

_ …_

_ …Hikaru?_

_ Yeah?_

_ You're still looking at me._

_ …I'm gonna go bug Haruhi…_

_ You do that._

_ And you?_

_ Riley._

_ See you later._

_ See you. Oh, and Hikaru?_

_ Yeah?_

_ Did you ever get to the honeymoon in those daydreams? _A waggle of eyebrows, a playful smirk pulling at his lips_._

A bright crimson spreading all over his cheeks_. Sh-shut up!_

Hikaru stomped off, still flustered and embarrassed, Kaoru chuckling to himself. Hikaru could be so adorable at times.

He looked around the room, leaning on the windowsill. Where could Riley have gone? Kaoru brightened as he saw her listening to music in the corner, looking like she was about to doze off. He smirked, quietly making his way over to her, lurking in the shadows.

As she began to nap, Kaoru smiled at her sleeping figure. Her neon green headphones were a tad too big for her, and her blonde hair fell over her face gently. She actually looked innocent and cute. Time to change that.

Carefully and stealthily, Kaoru lifted a headphone off of one ear, grinning as he pressed it to his own, trying to figure out what she was listening to. Only problem was that he wasn't hearing any music.

"What are you doing?" Kaoru jumped ten feet in the air, realizing that Riley's headphones had slipped off and onto her neck, causing her to wake up. She sat up, rubbing her eyes and yawning.

"Tried to startle you. It kind of backfired."

"That it did."

"…So why weren't you listening to anything?"

"I was listening to silence. Doesn't everybody?"

"…Never mind. We need to talk."

"Indeed we do."

"Follow me."

"To where?"

"Courtyard."

"Well, that's disappointing."

"Sorry, but the volcano with dragons was rented out already."

"Rats. Lead the way."

Sneaking out of the room, the two walked together to the main courtyard, Riley instantly collapsing onto the grass, her book bag abandoned next to her. She looked up to Kaoru, explaining, "I do my best thinking while laying down. You should try it. Right now."

Kaoru shrugged, lying down beside her, looking up at the sky. It was a nice day out, with only a few clouds in the sky. "So, you want to go first?" he asked, not looking over at her.

"Yeah. And I'm going to start by saying those female uniforms are ugly and I refuse to wear them."

"Then what _will_ you wear?"

"What _can_ I wear?"

"I don't know, something school appropriate."

"Then I shall wear a platypus costume. Moving on. Do you love me?"

"That's a little random, don't you think?"

"Just answer the question."

"I do."

"Say it."

"What?"

"Say you love me, and like you mean it."

"I, Kaoru Hitachiin, love you, Riley Davidson, with all my heart."

"Good."

"And do you love me?"

"I, Riley the Super-Fantastic-Awesome-Girl-You-Wish-You-Could-Be have deemed you, Kaoru Hitachiin, to be worthy of my heart."

"…Seriously, Riley."

"Okay, fine. I love you, too."

"Thank you."

"…So, uh…Have you ever thought about us getting married?"

"Not really. I mean, we haven't even been dating a month, and we're still in high school, so a lot can change."

"So you're saying that in between right now and the wedding ceremony you could realize you don't love me and that you love Haruhi."

"No."

"Then what _are_ you saying?"

"I'm just saying the thought hadn't crossed my mind, is all."

"…Kaoru?"

"Yeah?"

"…Have you ever loved Haruhi?"

Silence. "…I thought I did, a long time ago. Before I ever knew you existed."

"And what happened?"

"Hikaru loved her more. I could tell. I just had a little crush on her because she could tell us apart and was cute, but I knew that we could really only be friends, and that Hikaru's feelings were deeper for her."

"Oh, okay, I'm relieved."

"About what?"

"Well, you could tell me so easily, without stuttering and trying to cover it all up. I can tell you're over her."

"I am, Riley."

"…"

"…"

"Do you think people can fall in love twice?"

"Do you?"

"Not really. Once you find your one true love, that's it, you know? You were destined to be together, and that's that."

"You mean like the red strings of fate."

"The what?"

"Red strings of fate. There's an old myth that two soul-mates are attached by red strings on their pinkies."

"That would be awesome! Too bad it isn't true."

"You sure about that?"

"Yup."

"Look at your hand."

Kaoru lifted his hand closest to Riley, Riley lifting hers. She let out a small gasp as she saw a small red thread tied to their pinkies, connected. "You're a flipping magician. I knew it all along."

"Not really. I found some old red thread in the supply closet and took it with me, and then tied it when you were distracted."

"I still say you're a magician. It sounds cooler."

"Yeah, let's go with that."

A comfortable silence settled, the two of them now holding hands, looking up at the sky with smiles on their faces.

"You know, I'm still a little miffed that I never got a year's supply of Pocky."

"When we're married, Riley, I'll buy you all the Pocky you want."

She looked over to Kaoru, who did the same, their eyes meeting. A small smile grew on her face, as she leaned in to kiss him, telling him right before their lips met, "I would like that more than anything."

* * *

**Disclaimer: [Insert catchy disclaimer here]**

**Sappy romantic chapter is sappy, ne?**

**So yes, a bit of a confusion when it came to the twins. But the again, who isn't always getting them confused? Huh? Huh? :D -brick'd-**

**Moving on. Riley's dream sequence was fun to do. Sorry if it doesn't make sense or just plain stinks, but I don't intend to change it.**

**Lot's o' dialogue in this one. I like writing dialogue and leaving the character's expressions and actions up to you guys. Hikaru and Kaoru's silent conversation was especially fun and funny for me. Which brings up the question: Just how perverted is Hikaru? The world may never know. Or want to know. :P**

**(1)You've heard Tamaki yell it a thousand times, but perhaps you've never seen it spelled this way. This is the female version, although it's actually pronounced the same as the male, since the "e" is silent. There you go, your French lesson for the day. And I take Spanish. Ole! :{D -brick'd once more-**

**(2)"My friend" in German. If it's wrong, please tell me. Google translate has a notorious ability of being oh-so-very inaccurate.**

**So, read and enjoy!  
**


	16. Femme Fatale

**Feels like forever since I've updated this story. Hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!**

**Disclaimer: Bisco Hatori is responsible for OHSHC (which my mom is now watching... weird, I know...)

* * *

**

Chapter 16

Femme Fatale

Class 1-A stared. Every student that passed by had stared. Anyone in the building had stared.

Now sporting the yellow dress was Haruhi Fujioka, making her way to her desk, oblivious to the whispers and mumbles. She did find it awkward, and she had no clue what awaited her for the rest of the day, but she decided it would be best to try and not attract any more attention than she was already getting.

Riley, on the other hand, had thrown subtlety out the window like always.

Keeping true to her promise, Riley was not wearing the girl's school uniform, unlike Charlie and Alex, who had decided to more or less follow Haruhi's course of action. However, she did not have a platypus costume handy, and was instead wearing blue skinny jeans, sky blue Converse knee-tops, and a gray graphic T-shirt with a panda holding a multitude of neon balloons shaped like a heart on the front.

Several people raised their eyebrows, but kept their mouths shut, choosing to whisper about her only when she was out of earshot.

"Hello, Haruhi," the said girl purred, taking her seat next to her. "Where are the twins?"

"I don't know. Didn't the Host Club send you a uniform? They even threatened to raise my debt if I didn't wear it…"

"Oh, no, my parents did."

"…And?"

"And I didn't want to so I said 'screw it', threw the giant lemon away and got ready for school. By the way, have you seen the looks on all of those girls' faces? All of our customers' minds are blown because they've been flirting with girls."

Haruhi decided to drop the topic as well, simply supplying, "It has to be awkward. It is for me, anyway."

"You know what would make it less awkward?" Riley asked, a smirk that looked identical to the Hitachiin's playing on her lips, her eyes twinkling.

Haruhi silently cringed, wondering if Kaoru was starting to rub off on Riley, asking warily, "What…?" At this point, she wasn't quite sure if she wanted to know.

"A boyfriend."

"Eh?" Sure enough, this was not an answer Haruhi had wanted, and a light blush crept onto her cheeks. She shook it off, regaining composure and deadpanned, "No. I'm not interested."

Riley pouted, whining, "But what about the Masquerade Dance?" She gave Haruhi her best puppy dog eyes, her bottom lip quivering.

"Oh, I almost forgot about that," Haruhi mumbled, remembering just how excited Tamaki had been about it.

Regaining that impish glint in her eyes, Riley scooted closer to the brunette, singing, "And I hear a certain Hitachiin Twin is available~."

Before Haruhi could once again reject the idea, a pair of voices chorused, "Morning female Riley and female Haruhi."

"And good morning to you, somewhat male Kaoru and equally somewhat male Hikaru."

"Somewhat?" Kaoru questioned, taking his seat beside Riley, Hikaru sitting on the other side, next to Haruhi, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That I could beat you both up," Riley shrugged, leaning back in her seat, seeming to forget her previous conversation with Haruhi.

Kaoru rolled his eyes, sniggering, "In your dreams."

"I believe you meant to say in _your_ nightmares."

"So Haruhi, wearing the uniform?" Hikaru asked, looking up and down.

Haruhi simply replied with a 'no-duh, Sherlock' look, taking out a notebook from her book bag.

Kaoru looked at Riley, adding, "And you're not?"

"Nope. Sorry to disappoint you, but they ran out of platypus costumes."

Hikaru and Haruhi simply stared at the two. "What?" they asked, equally bewildered.

Riley flashed them a grin, casually throwing in, "So, I heard you two need dates to the Masquerade-ow!" Riley glared at Haruhi, muttering, "Not. Cool."

Haruhi couldn't help but let a small smile tug at the edges of her lips. Sure, it wasn't that subtle, but a good kick in the shin always seemed to shut people up, didn't it?

* * *

Needless to say, Charlie felt quite awkward at being stared at with wide eyes when she walked in the next day with the girl's uniform on.

"Charlotte," Tamaki greeted, taking his seat next to her, cooing, "Are you as excited for the Masquerade Ball as I am?"

"It sounds pretty fun."

For another five minutes, Charlie chatted with him, then noticed something. "Hey, um," she muttered, looking over to a group of girls obviously staring at Tamaki and trying to hide it, "Your fans seem a little less sociable today."

Tamaki raised a brow, asking, "Really? I haven't noticed. I suppose they _have_ been a bit shy around me." He looked over to the girls, all of them looking away and blushing.

"Maybe it has something to do with the engagement and that we're dating," Charlie hinted, trying to get at something that had been nagging her for actually quite a while now, "Maybe they think it's awkward to flirt with somebody's boyfriend…"

"Hmm…" Tamaki looked pensive. However, being the idiot that he was, he didn't connect the two and chirped, "No, they're probably just feeling stunned from your beauty."

Charlie sighed, used to Tamaki being an idiot. Kyouya came into the classroom a minute later, asking as he took his seat, "So, Charlotte, anything new now that everyone knows your true gender?"

Pointedly looking over to Tamaki, she sighed, "Nope, same old same old."

* * *

Alex took no notice of her classmate's stares. She was too busy noticing just how silent Mori was, as always, while Hunny spouted compliments and conversation.

Once Hunny had finished his conversation, Alex asked Mori, "I've been wondering; you said you're in the Kendo Club, but just where is it?"

"Courtyard."

Alex clenched her teeth. She should've been used to it, yet his short, clipped answers kept bugging her. "You know, I never got the chance to ask you, but what do you think about this whole engagement thing?" She was too annoyed to be subtle, choose her words, or even act nervous or embarrassed. Surely this would get an actual answer out of him.

"I don't know."

She should have seen that coming. Alex sighed, defeated, and turned back to her book, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like "You're a different kind, Takashi…" Silently fuming with anger, she flipped her page, the paper slicing her index finger, causing her to let out a small yelp of pain.

The entire class turned to her, their attention already being on her to begin with, and Hunny bubbled, "Oh no! Alex, are you hurt? Do you need to see the nurse?"

She told them calmly, still trying to hide the fact of just how ticked off she was at Mori, "No, I'm fine, just a simple paper cut."

"Are you sure?" Hunny asked, pointing to her finger and cooing, "Alex, I think you need a Band-Aid, it's bleeding. Oh, maybe they'll have something really cute! With little pictures on it!"

Alex couldn't hear what he was saying after she heard "bleeding". Her eyes widened, her face paled, and her body was shaking as she looked back to her finger, feeling woozy. Without a single word, her body swayed, her eyes closed, and she landed on the floor with a faint thud, the entire class staring.

Suddenly, Class 3-A looked like it was rehearsing for a hospital drama. "Someone get her to the nurse!" "Oh my gosh, is she okay?" "What happened? I didn't see!" "Should we call an ambulance?" The students jabbered and screeched and ran around, unsure of what was going on, their teacher too busy trying to calm them down to do anything.

Mori lifted Alex silently up into his arms, bridal style, and carried her swiftly out the room, Hunny leading him and opening the door, the class still too worried to have noticed their disappearance.

Hunny asked Mori, looking at Alex's limp body, "Is she going to be okay?"

Mori stared ahead, giving a nod. He replied, "I think she's afraid of blood." The small boy's lips formed a perfect o, and he nodded, taking this answer.

Once at the school's clinic, the nurse wrapped a small Band-Aid around Alex's finger, and let her rest on a cot, assuring the two boys that she would be perfectly fine and just needed some rest.

This seemed to cheer up Hunny, and he leaned over the cot, smiling and whispering happily to Alex's peaceful face, "See you soon." He skipped out of the room, waiting just outside for Takashi.

The nurse had turned back to her work, but could practically feel another presence in the room. She turned in her chair to see Mori standing beside the cot, watching Alex. "Young man," she interrupted cheerfully, "She'll be fine, and you can head back to class now. I'll be sure to send her back when she wakes up."

Mori gave a slight nod, and with one last look at Alex, he walked out of the room, following Mitskuni as they went back to class, Alex sleeping peacefully.

* * *

"WHERE IS ALEX?" Tamaki yelled, the second Mori and Hunny reported to the Host Club without Alex by their side. "Is she missing? Has she been kidnapped?"

"She went to the infirmary," Hunny chirped, assuring them, "She just got a paper cut, but she fainted when she saw blood, so she should be waking up pretty soon."

Charlie and Riley nodded, everyone deciding that she would be fine and returning to setting up for the day. Before the doors opened, though, Kyouya announced, "As of right now, I don't think it would be wise to have Haruhi and the Davidson Sisters host. Haruhi, you may serve food and drinks to our customers for the moment to pay off your debt, but you three can leave if you wish."

Looking at each other, Riley chirped, "Nah, the Host Club is too much fun to just quit."

"Even if all we're doing right now is serving tea to squealing girls," Charlie muttered.

Just ten minutes later, the doors were opened and the club chorused, "Welcome."

Oddly enough, the customers giggled and chatted with the three hostesses rather comfortably, seeming to accept the fact that they were females. However, Riley had a different theory. "That part of their brains just short-circuited. They've convinced themselves that we're just new students and that our male counterparts transferred."

"Helpful as ever, Riley."

"Shut up, Charlie."

* * *

Alex moaned a bit, rubbing her head as she propped her upper-body up with her elbows, looking around the room sleepily. All she could remember was being mad at Mori, then getting a paper cut, seeing bl- that red stuff, and then blacking out.

"Oh, you're awake." Her head swiveled around to find that the source was one of the tens of nurses in the large infirmary, standing in front of her cot with a clipboard.

She replied dryly, "You sound surprised. Was I supposed to be dead by now?"

"Oh, no sweetie," she chirped, plastering on a bubble-gum smile, "We were just worried that you would be out until way after school. But do you feel all right now?"

"Yes. May I leave?"

"Of course. Be sure to come right back if you start feeling light-headed again."

Without replying, Alex stood up, making her way out of the clinic and into the halls of Ouran, noting that the classrooms were empty. It was still light out though, and she figured that the Host Club probably just started a few minutes ago.

She rubbed her head with one hand, her book bag in the other. What was she mad at Takashi about again? Oh, right, he wouldn't talk.

Why did this bother her so much? Truth be told, Alex had never felt comfortable around quiet people, as she had always been raised to keep a polite conversation going, for business reasons. Yet here was Mori, who even after all her poking and prodding, wouldn't utter more than a sentence, grunt, or word at a time, depending on the question.

Gritting her teeth, she continued on her way to Music Room 3, not sure what she would be doing at the Host Club. Probably serving the customers, most likely, no, scratch that, _definitely_ Kyouya's suggestion. Lovely.

She slowed down her pace, allowing herself to stroll leisurely, enjoying the beauty of the school and thinking.

The engagement. It scared her, it really did. She couldn't handle not having Mori talk to her. She wanted him to speak to her, to confide in her and be that one person that he communicated with. Wasn't that how it always seemed to work in all those stories and movies?

Unfortunately for her, this was her life. These things rarely ever turned out to be true, anyway.

Alex sighed, knowing full well that she shouldn't even be doing this. She shouldn't be feeling this way for Mori. What would Shane say about it? She would have to end it soon, anyway, as the engagement would put an even bigger barrier between them. Still, she really did like him…

"Speaking of Shane," Alex muttered to herself, pulling out her cell phone and checking to make sure the hallway was all clear. She mentally corrected herself, as she had never uttered a single word out loud about him. After pressing a number on speed dial, she quickly put the receiver to her ear, praying that the time difference wasn't too great and he would pick up.

"Hey Alex! I was just thinking about you."

She blushed, replying, "Hi, Shane. What are you doing right now?"

"Well, it's around 10:30 here in L.A., so I'm just reading. And what's going on in with you?"

"I'm about to head off to the Host Club." With that, she retold the whole story to him, smiling and letting go a bit.

Shane whistled, saying, "So how did you end up in the clinic?"

"I think Takashi carried me."

"…Um, about that Mori guy…"

"You know about the engagement, right?"

"Yeah, I just heard it on the news. Were you planning on telling me?"

"Look, Shane, if you want to-"

"No, I think everything's fine."

"…You do?"

"I mean, you don't have feelings for the guy, right?"

Swallowing, Alex replied smoothly, "Obviously not. We're just friends."

"Good. Oh, and one more thing…"

"Yes?"

"Well, I'm tired of having to keep this relationship a secret. I really like you, Alex, and I think your family deserves to know. Especially since you've more or less made up with your sisters."

She bit her lip. "Shane, I'm not sure if this is a good time. I mean, we aren't even in the same country…"

Silence. Had she insulted him? Alex began to slowly walk down the hall, alert, her eyes scanning to see if anyone else was here.

"…You're right. Now's not a good time. Well, I love you. I'll call you later."

"Love you." Click. And that was that.

Alex slid her phone into her bag, coming to the doors of the Host Club. She smiled, picturing Shane. It would've been so nice to see him, to see if he had changed. But could they really risk their relationship being found out…? Especially now that she was engaged. What would Mori say?

She shook her head. She would have to do something later. She couldn't marry Mori. She just couldn't. Or could she…?

Upon opening the door, Alex was greeted with a sight that was not welcome.

"Oh, Mori..the engagement..."

Her lips parted in shock as she watched a small, mousy girl with a brown braid and tears in her sapphire eyes hug the senior, Mori hugging back and closing his eyes. The others seemed equally shocked, and only her sisters and Haruhi noticed as she staggered backwards, out of the room.

This was too much. Without another thought, she bolted, tears welling up in her eyes. Why was she crying? She wasn't quite hurt that Mori was hugging the girl, although she was a little. But she was definitely confused.

She let the limo door slam behind her, her head falling into her hands, sobbing lightly. Her head snapped up when she heard light tapping on the window, to see Charlie and Riley standing on either side of the limo. Once the driver had let them in, they stared in slight wonder, as they had never seen Alex cry before.

Needless to say, it was an even bigger shock, as she didn't even try to hold back, crying right in front of them, allowing them to wrap their arms around her in a hug.

The ride home was silent, besides Alex's light sobbing, which had become just a lump in her throat by the time they were home. "I'm so confused," she whispered as they pulled into the drive.

"No kidding. Who would've thought Mori actually had a girlfriend? He was always turning girls down because he wanted to care for Hunny…"

Alex sighed, Charlie shooting Riley a glare. It was a little more complicated than that. But for now at least, she would have to just hang up, keep it secret, lock it all away from them.

Click. And that was that.

* * *

**So, confusing enough for you? /brick'd**

**Okay, the next chapter will explain a lot more. I like plot twists. Don't you?**

**This was not the original plan. (Hence why I haven't dropped hints about Shane before) However, I felt that the story wasn't really going anywhere, and needed a little drama, just a little extra kick. And there you go.**

**I'm actually planning on finishing this bad boy up pretty soon. I'm veering off course, so we'll see where this takes us.**

**Read and enjoy!  
**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Get a Clue, Take a Hint, Just Do Something!

Ever since Alex had cried, Charlie had been slightly shaken up. Even though she wasn't with the seniors, she could tell from the fact that all three were silent walking with her and Riley in the hall, even Hunny, that things were going to be awkward, at least for today.

When she walked into her own class, however, a distinct drop of her stomach took place, along with a slight grinding of teeth. Three girls giggled mindlessly, Tamaki in the center, practically sparkling. "T-Tamaki…" one girl asked shyly, venturing, "W-will you… save a dance for me at the Masquerade Ball?"

"Of course, my princess," he cooed, cupping her chin with his hand and gently forcing her to look in his violet eyes. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Charlie's glare immediately sent an icy chill down the fangirls' spines, causing all three to shriek and run to their seats, hiding their faces in books. Tamaki looked as clueless as ever, until he saw Charlie. He let out a small yelp, jumping back a little, and stuttered, "W-what's wrong, Charlotte?"

"Oh, nothing," she spat, her tone filled with malice, her eyes burning with anger. "Everything's just peachy." She took her seat grumpily, not even bothering to spare Tamaki another glance.

Idiot he was; completely oblivious, Tamaki was not. Cautiously, he followed after her, standing in front of her desk and asking, "What's bothering you, Charlotte?"

"Nothing."

"Please tell me," he pleaded, using his puppy-dog eyes.

"Just go and attend to your audience," Charlie hissed, using her shut-the-hell-up-before-I-beat-you-to-a-pulp eyes. They worked far better than Tamaki's, and he whimpered, finally giving up and pouting, deciding to take a seat farther away from her to give her some space. He was pensive, and Charlie couldn't help but look over and let a glimmer of hope ignite that maybe, just maybe, he was getting the message.

Instantly, a small group of girls crowded around him, asking what was wrong. He snapped out of his daze and pouted, telling them that something was wrong with Charlie. All of the devoted fangirls swiveled their heads to lock eyes with her and glare daggers into her, as if this was suddenly all her fault that their precious prince was now saddened. Once they had felt she got the message, they turned back to Tamaki, comforting him and surrounding him so that Charlie could no longer see a single blonde hair.

She gaped, staring at the crowd. She turned back to her notebook, gripping her pencil tightly and pressing the lead down as hard as she could on the paper, the pencil snapping. Muttering irritably to herself, she reached into her bag to grab a new one, thinking about just how much attention Tamaki paid to those other girls. He was in love with _her_, wasn't he? That's what she had always thought…

Charlie blinked back both angry and sad tears, cursing herself for being so selfish. "You know, Tamaki won't get the message if you don't spell it out for him. He's an idiot, after all." She jumped, her head turning towards the source of the voice, which was the desk next to her on the other side, containing the Shadow King.

"K-Kyouya," she gasped, recovering from her mini-heart attack, "I didn't see you there…"

"I've been here this whole time."

"Right," she replied dumbly. Of course he had seen everything; he was Kyouya. She turned back to her paper, trying to ignore all the girls' giggling from most likely one of Tamaki's compliments.

Kyouya watched her for a minute, admiring how calm and pretty she looked when she focused. He told her, "You know, it's just his nature."

"Eh?"

"Tamaki; it's in his blood to compliment them. He can't help it."

Charlie looked over to the blonde, who was now finally seen as the girls took their seats for class. She bit her lip, opening up slightly, and admitting, "I know that, it's just…"

"Just what?" Kyouya prodded, studying her.

She let out a small sigh, turning to him and explaining, "It's just that, he always made me feel special, you know? One of the reasons I guess I really love him is that…I never really got too much attention growing up because I was never the one arguing with the others, and…he gave me that. But now…"

"Now he's doing the same with other girls," Kyouya nodded, turning to the front of the classroom.

Charlie watched him for a minute, turning back to her paper. How in the world did he understand? Then again, why was she opening up to him of all people? Now that she thought about it, she had actually felt rather comfortable around Kyouya; he was someone you could depend on, something steady. While on the surface he seemed cold, underneath he was actually rather understanding, and probably cared about the club the most.

"Um, Kyouya?"

"Yes?"

"…Would you think less of me if I admitted I was jealous?"

He looked slightly taken aback, but smiled a little, explaining, "I could see you were jealous from the minute you spotted Tamaki with his fans."

"Oh. Right."

A few minutes of silence took place between them as the teacher began the lesson for today. However, once she began to write on the board, Kyouya whispered, causing Charlie to blush lightly, "And considering that you've already proved to be so strong, no, I don't think I could ever think less of you for something as small as envy."

She looked over to him, seeing him taking notes nonchalantly, as if he had never said a word. She smiled, whispering, "Thank you."

"For what?"

"…For saying everything I needed to hear."

"I was simply stating the truth. No need for thanks."

Charlie smiled, knowing full well that Kyouya just didn't want to admit he had showed kindness. "Whatever you say, Kyouya."

* * *

"Okay, that's it!" Riley yelled above her classmates in the hall, all of them making their way to the cafeteria for lunch. She jumped in front of Hikaru, Kaoru, and Haruhi, causing them to come to an abrupt halt. She pointed to Haruhi and Hikaru, who were walking next to each other, and declared, "You both need dates. The dance is now four days away, counting today. I'm not even giving you an option anymore, you two _have_ to ask each other!"

The group stared blankly at her, Kaoru coming up to her side. "She's right," he purred, siding with Riley, "Unless you two actually have someone else in mind, which I doubt, you have no choice but to go together."

"You mean, like… a date?" Hikaru asked cautiously, looking over to Haruhi. He was blushing a bright crimson, and even the non-easily flustered Haruhi had a light pink gracing her cheeks.

"No," Riley muttered sarcastically, "Like strangers." Then, with more than a little frustration in her voice, she snapped, "Of course I mean a date!"

Haruhi blinked owlishly, mumbling, "No need to yell."

"Fine then," Riley snapped, "If you don't want me to yell about the fact that you two are in _looove_ then you'll ask each other to the dance. _Right_. _Now_."

"No."

Kaoru sniggered, "You know you shouldn't test her like that…"

"HEY EVERYBODY!" Riley yelled, almost everyone in the hall stopping to stare at her.

Haruhi and Hikaru's eyes widened, and they immediately shushed her, Kaoru telling the students, "Never mind." Baffled, the other teens continued on their way, Hikaru and Haruhi now looking at each other.

"So, if I ask Haruhi," Hikaru began slowly, cautiously, "Then you won't embarrass me anymore."

"Not this week," Riley compromised.

Hikaru eyed her warily, finally letting out a sigh. He turned to Haruhi, suddenly growing extremely uncomfortable under the gaze of her chocolate orbs. "U-Um, Haruhi?" he asked, looking at the ground and rubbing his arm, "Do you want to go to the dance with me, er, something…?"

Haruhi glanced over towards Riley, who was giving her a glare that said 'say-yes-before-I-yell', and Kaoru, who was almost laughing a little at Riley's face, but also smiling at the two. She turned back to Hikaru, lightly blushing, and giving him a nod. "Yes."

"Finally!" Riley huffed dramatically, "I mean, come on! Was it really so hard?"

"But remember, you can't embarrass me or Hikaru," Haruhi told her, avoiding eye contact with Hikaru, who was more than happy to oblige. I mean, this was a date… a _date_ date…

Kaoru grinned from ear to ear, causing Haruhi and Hikaru's stomach to drop. "Yeah, but I didn't." He turned to Riley, who grinned back at him, and before Hikaru or Haruhi could try to pounce on him and make him shut up, he was yelling to the packed hallway of students, "HEY EVERYBODY! HIKARU AND HARUHI ARE IN LOVE!"

"KAORU!" the two growled, Riley and Kaoru laughing their heads off as they sprinted towards the cafeteria, Hikaru right at their heels with Haruhi lagging a little behind.

"Next time, we'll use a megaphone. And we'll have to call the entire school to the auditorium."

"I like the way you think, Riley. And we should have the two on stage with us."

"Oh, the things you can do when to people are just realizing they're in love…"

"Beautiful, isn't it? Now we better hurry up, Hikaru's about to rip our heads off."

"Correction: He's going to rip _my_ head off. You're twins, so you're off limits."

"How about we just run?"

"I like that plan."

* * *

To say that afternoon classes with the senior trio were awkward was an understatement. Alex and Mori avoided eye contact, and Hunny could tell that this was not the time to speak, so he remained fairly quiet, too.

Finally, as the three were packing up for the end of the day, Alex asked, still not locking eyes with Mori, "So, uh…What's your girlfriend's name?"

"Jin Yamazaki. Class 3B."

Alex nodded, asking quietly, "How long have you two been together?"

This time, Hunny, sensing Mori's discomfort, answered for him, explaining, "Jin and Mori have been seeing each other in secret for over a year. They were going to tell everyone else, but then the engagement popped up."

"Oh, I see. She seems very sweet, and I'll have to meet her sometime."

Another few minutes of silence followed, until the group were in the hall, making their way to the Host Club. "Ne, Alex?"

"Yes, Mitskuni?"

"…Are you mad at Mori or me?"

She blinked. Well, grant it the fact that she had begun to have some sort of feelings for Mori, or at least she thought she did, made it painful, Shane popped up into her mind. "No, I'm not. But why would I be mad at you, Hunny?"

"Oh, because I knew."

Alex gave him a small smile, asserting, "I'm not mad at either of you. You two go ahead, I have to make a call. I'll catch up with you later."

Hunny beamed, chirping, "Okay! See you soon, Alex!" He turned to Mori, who gave her a small nod, and asked, "Takashi, how are you feeling?"

"…I'm not sure. Awkward."

Hunny nodded, continuing on his merry way. "Well, if you need to talk about something, be sure to not bottle it all up!"

Mori looked back down the hall to try and spot Alex again, but she had already disappeared. Deep down, he knew that things were far more complicated than just awkward. He had to admit that he was beginning to develop a bit of a crush on her, but being with Jin was just…natural. He followed after Hunny, silently trying to oppress all his thoughts. If anything, the easiest thing to do was to appear as calm and stoic as always.

* * *

Doing a double take to make sure that she was all alone in the classroom, Alex flipped out her phone, pressing it to her ear and counted how many times it rang.

On the third, a familiar velvety voice greeted warmly, "Hey Alex."

She seemed to lighten, and she could begin to feel her worries slowly lift off her shoulders. "Shane," she replied, "I just needed to talk to you again."

"What's bothering you?"

Alex sighed. He knew her so well. But how in the world could she tell him her troubles with Mori when it would obviously make him feel betrayed? Besides, she still hadn't sorted out the whole mess herself. "Well, you know how I'm engaged to Takashi Morinozuka…?

"Yeah…"

"He has a girlfriend."

There was a small pause, and then a chuckle coming form the other end of the line. "Well, unless I'm mistaken, Alex, _you _have me as a boyfriend."

"Right, well…it just kind of shocked me, you know?"

After a pause that gave Alex's heart a jump-start, leaving her wondering if Shane could hear it too, he replied easily and casually, "Yeah, I guess that might be a bit of a shock to tell someone, and I would know."

"Oh?" Alex inquired, raising a brow, "And just how do you know?"

She could practically see him sweating on the other end as he stuttered and rambled, "O-oh, just, um…happened t-to a friend, er, something…"

"Shane, _you_ don't even believe yourself."

He let out a breath. "Okay, okay… I _might _have let it slip to my friends and family last night…"

"You did what now?"

"Alex, calm down. I've wanted to tell them ever since we started going out. They still think we hate each other and all that, and… I just couldn't let them keep thinking that when I love you."

She froze, listening to those three magic words. Before she moved to Japan and met Mori, she could have easily said them back with all her heart. Now, it felt like…almost like she was cheating on him. "O-okay. What did they do?"

Shane seemed to relax, explaining, "Well, at first they laughed, thinking that I was joking. And then when they realized I was dead serious, they kind of…just stared. I think they're still getting over the whole shock of it."

Alex listened. The secret was out on his side of the world. If she truly loved him, then wouldn't she want her half to know about it, too?

"Listen, I have to get going. But do you have a date to the Masquerade Ball?"

"No, why?"

"Just wondering. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye."

She couldn't move. What was she supposed to do? Just drop the 'hey-I-had-a-boyfriend-this-whole-time-back-in-America' bomb? An image of Jin hugging Mori popped into her head, making her heart ache.

Well if Mori could do it, then she could, too. She made her way out of the classroom, swiftly making her way to the music room with purpose. She was going to do it. She had to.

Opening the doors, she saw that the hosts and hostesses were still getting ready. Perfect, she had plenty of time. "Excuse me," she cleared her throat, making her presence known, "I have something I need to tell you all." Alex had barely spoken since the whole Jin incident, and seeing her actually want to kept the other club members silent.

Making her way to the center of the room, she looked around at all the familiar faces. How would their opinions of her change when she told them? When she locked eyes with Mori, hers narrowed, and she thought bitterly that it would be more honorable to tell them than to just do what Takashi had.

"Riley, Charlie? Do you remember Shane Oswald?"

Both of the sisters blinked, and looked at each other. Riley replied cautiously, "You mean, the surfer boy who went to our school that you hated with a fiery passion?"

"Yes, him."

"What about him?" Charlie prodded, the rest of the club just as intrigued.

Alex took a deep breath, closing her eyes. No more shutting them out. No more hiding. "He's my boyfriend."

And for what seemed to be the first time in her life, Alex couldn't just tell her mind "that was that".

* * *

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, whatever.**

**DUN DUN DUUUUUN -shot-**

**That ending bugs me, for some reason, but it's the best I could think of. -.-**

**We're drawing to an end, my readers. Three or four chapters left, and then an epilogue. I be excited. :D**

**I don't want to say much and give anything away, but it feels like I haven't said enough about the chapter, so uh...stay in school and don't do drugs?**

**Oh, and in case you're wondering why it's just called "Chapter 17" on the drop down menu thingy, (not than any of you care) it's because the entire title wouldn't fit. Curse you, word limits! D:  
**

**Read and enjoy!  
**


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